S.L.V. from Stag’s Leap has been one of California’s absolute cult wines ever since 1976, when vintage 1973 at the mythical Paris Tasting won over wines such as Mouton-Rothschild, Haut-Brion, Ridge Monte Bello and Leoville Las Cases. This tasting, and not least this wine, was instrumental in making the whole world aware of the fantastic wines from California. Due to the history-making identity of the wine, S.L.V. today still a collector’s item and a real cult wine, which belongs in the finest cellars worldwide. The wine originates from the small part of the Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars field, which lies north of the small stream that runs through the property. Here the soil is slightly fatter and heavier, which gives a deeper and darker fruit and more marked tannins in the wine. The aroma is packed with i.a. ripe blackcurrants, blueberries, plums, lavender, black olives, cardamom and cedar in the style of the wines of Bordeaux! This is truly wine built for the long haul. In the wine’s youth, one is amazed by the incredible intensity of the fruit and the at the same time distinctive, but also soft structure that the wine has. Everything is right where it should be, it just needs a few years to come together completely. When the wine is young, it has so much juice and power that it should be enjoyed in the company of e.g. beef of the finest quality, spicy dishes with lamb or dark poultry. The wine can advantageously be oxygenated 1-2 hours before serving at 15-16 degrees. The wine will develop even greater complexity over the next 25-30 years.
Today, Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars is still the producer behind some of Napa Valley’s most sought-after wines. The house helped create a completely new phenomenon in the world of wine, when a Stag’s Leap Cabernet in 1976 for the now iconic tasting in Paris, won the blind tasting and among other things beat wines such as Mouton-Rothschild, Haut-Brion, Ridge Monte Bello and Leoville Las Cases. After this, the term ‘New World Wine’ was coined and no one laughed at the Cowboy wines from Napa anymore. Since then, Stag’s Leap has been a global superstar and the wines are in many of the most prestigious cellars around the world.
Napa Valley, the beautiful 20-mile long valley sheltered between the east and west mountain ranges, north of San Francisco. Here, the day is always sunny and warm, the nights cool. The Prohibition era from 1920-34 was a tough time for Napa Valley, but quite a few winemakers made it through the Puritan era by making altar wine. Napa Valley became world famous in 1976, when the wine Stag’s Leap was the first wine ever outside Europe to beat French 1st Crus in a blind tasting. The film “Bottleshock” is about the revolutionary event in the world of wine that put Napa Valley on the wine world map forever.). Napa Valley has become synonymous with Californian intense, high-alcohol, distinctive wine based on Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot and the signature grape Zinfandel.
Vinification: 24 months in new French oak, 13% in older French oak.
Tasting notes: Cult wine, classic American Cabernet, resilient and with flavors of blueberries, dark chocolate and sea salt.
Recommended for: Cheese, lamb, veal, game, beef, grill and barbecue
Parker’s Wine Advocate 93-95 Points
Parker’s Wine Advocate 95-97 Points
Parker’s Wine Advocate 95-97 Points
Vinous 95 Points
