2019 Napa Cab Quality?

Roberto_I · December 28, 2020, 8:39pm

Awesome intel. Thank you Roy and Russell! Sounds like I have to prep the bank account for 18 & 19…

Merrill_Lindquist · December 28, 2020, 8:44pm

All’s good here at EMH for 2019. I just pulled a composite sample last week and it is classic Black Cat.

Gabe_Berk · December 28, 2020, 11:24pm

What Roy said

Regardless of 2020 not producing much if any Napa Cab, I’m stocking up on available 2018 and 2019 Cabernet as they are both A++ and A+ vintages. So far of the 2018 Napa Valley Cabernets that have been released, my favorite QPR is the 2018 Bevan Ontogeny. $95 for that wine is incredible. A lot of the 2018 Napa Cabernets I’ve had are so tightly wound up, they need to be forgotten for at least a year to shed any light onto what they’ll become. The 2018 Ontogeny is ready for business now and will only get better.

FMansfield · January 4, 2021, 11:00pm

Now that most 2018s are sold, us winery owners/winemakers have shifted our focus to the 2019 vintage in barrel. Almost all of us have racked the 2019 wines at least once, they have 13 months in oak and we are getting an idea which lots are doing better and what our blends and wines will look like. I do feel confident we can make a general verdict on it, already.

It’s an “excellent” vintage but probably not a “great, great” vintage like 2018. The 2018 vintage is up there with 2013, 2002, 1994, 1991; most likely approachable now (if you can tolerate tannin) but also will age for decades. The 18s had everything.

The 2019 vintage is, quality-wise, up there with 2010, 2014, 2006, 1996, 1992. No one will be complaining about 2019 in my opinion and almost everyone I know if awfully happy with em. They have potential to get even better, too. I feel the southern half of the valley did a bit better than the northern and the floor better than the mountains 2/3 of the time.

And given the worries about 2020 and potential smoke taint, I actually expect a pretty strong demand for the 19s, as many collectors and fans will be tightening their selection in 2022 when the 2020s come out and will want to “load up” with enough 19s to get through the gap. Locally, the prices for bulk 2019 juice in barrel is up 100% since the fires, as wineries want more of the top excess juice to release, knowing revenues will drop in 2022.

2019 started with huge amounts of rain, over 26 inches between Jan and Feb, alone. A lot of vines used all that water to produce lots of foliage and thus it was important that vineyard owners went through and cut out excess growth and dropped excess clusters. Vines don’t know we want to make great wine and thus respond to what nature gives them, so all that water made them want to produce a lot of everything. The soils stayed damp 12-inches down even by July, so many top vineyards basically could dry farm if they wanted, for the rest of the vintage.

The rest of the season was moderate, with very few heat events, and also very little rain at the end, so we could hang and hang. Brix at harvest were standard for what each winemaker usually prefers, acid was moderate and tannins just a touch bigger than usual. Production size was average for Napa.

If you like to buy your favorite producers in most vintages, this will be one you want. I find (as do many of my winemaker friends) that the 2019 Cabs have a somewhat “linear” mouthfeel and slight “leanness” that our 2014s had when young. In my own case, I found my 14s quite linear until the last 12 months, when they started blossoming beautifully. It also reminds me of the under-rated 2006 vintage for Napa, which was much the same; required a bit of age, 5 years or so, and then open up into really beautiful wines that have stuffing to age. I think 06 has turned out to be a better vintage than 07, in retrospect. And 2014 better than 2015.

Putting on my collectors hat, the back-to-back 2018/2019 combo reminds me of how 1992 followed 1991 and 1995 followed 1994 and 2014 followed 2013… excellent but just a tick behind the vintage that preceded it. It may not bring out the Cab buyers who only collect the top 2 or 3 vintages of a decade but will be made up for by those who “load up” for the potential drought of options coming in 2022.

Hope this helps!

Thanks Roy!

DavidC1 · January 5, 2021, 3:47pm

Here I am sitting here… still trying to get allocation from Roy. I’ve recieved and seen all his tasting videos but just no wine

NickRut · January 13, 2021, 2:31am

Bumping this. Galloni seemed to infer that 19 was a bigger more concentrated vintage than 18. Wondering who else has insight?

scott.becker · January 13, 2021, 7:05pm

I loved reading the observations from Roy and Russell. Might still be a little early for me to offer a definitive comparison between 2018 and 2019. In fairness, I’ve tasted some other (growing by the day) 2018’s but not enough of Napa Valley to comment with conviction. And my thoughts on 2019 are restricted to our barrels only since I haven’t really been tasting other producers’ barrels in a year or so.

In the vineyard, I completely agree with the commentary about the 2019 growing season - lots of vigor to contend with. But strangely enough, at this particular moment in time, I might find myself on the other side of the debate with Roy about 2019 vs 2018. (Roy, I propose we resolve this over another infamous long lunch! ) Our 2019’s in barrel seem to have a little more fleshiness…we like to call it baby fat…than the 2018’s did. A little more concentration, a touch less acidity. I might give a slight nod to our 2019’s over 2018 at the moment. Either way, I think we are blessed to have two great vintages in 2018 and 2019. And I feel especially blessed with these two vintages given the devastation of the 2020 vintage.

The decade of 2010 through 2019 might arguably be the greatest decade yet for wine quality in Napa Valley. Time will tell where each vintage ranks. The challenging vintages would be 2011 and 2017 although I think in both cases (and for different reasons) the wines have turned out very well. It’s been an extraordinary string of 10 vintages which I think will age well compared to the decades of 1980’s, 90’s, 2000’s.

Betty_C · January 13, 2021, 7:36pm

Roy Piper? Did you email him?

H.Ma · January 27, 2021, 12:59am

From TRB

The Excellent 2019 Vintage

“After now tasting a lot of 2019’s, it is a better vintage than 2018. There’s a freshness there that we haven’t seen since 2016 that helps balance the concentration. A cool vintage overall, the picking windows for 2019 were very long, which gave us the luxury of harvesting each different vineyard block at the perfect level of ripeness. The moment we pressed the grapes, we knew this wine was heading toward greatness. It’s exhibiting remarkable freshness that perfectly balances its flavor concentration, and compares to the exceptional 2001/2 vintages for tannins and acidity. Schrader Wappo Hill will be wonderfully enjoyable at release but will also be an ideal addition to your cellar for many years to come.” – Thomas Rivers Brown, Winemaker

NickRut · January 27, 2021, 1:13am

Of course it’s better than 18. People have wine to sell!

JohnP · January 28, 2021, 12:50am

I’ve popped some 2018’s of Carter, Realm and Bevan and I’ve found them to be consistently lighter in style than say 2016 or 2013. The quality seems high, but probably early drinkers compared to those two power vintages. I think I’m more of a fan of the “visceral thrill factor” that AG mentions about those two vintages, so I hope 2019 will deliver something bigger and more concentrated.

NickRut · January 28, 2021, 12:57am

I’d say that I am similar to you. I tend to lean towards the more powerful vintages. 19 seems to be getting that reputation thus far. Just means more wine to buy, fortunately or unfortunately.

Casey_Hartlip · January 28, 2021, 1:14am

BEST…VINTAGE…EVER.

Chris_Atkins · January 28, 2021, 2:14am

Really we should place less emphasis on Vintage and more on the Producer.

2011 was widely criticized early on, and still is, yet some 11’s are blossoming into beautiful wines. The 2011 Heather Glen, and 2011 Dunn Howell Mountain are among my favorite wines of all time!

Conversely I have been disappointed with overblown 2007’s on more than a few occasions. Top tier, high scoring, stalwart producers too.

I do have a great feeling about 2018 and 2019, especially the latter.

Roberto_I · January 28, 2021, 2:37am

Completely agree. There was a great thread about surprising “off” vintages of Bordeaux that walked through the same sentiment. Link below. You are likely to find some gems at value prices in those.

Jake_Danberry · January 28, 2021, 2:46pm

WOW. That information is very helpful. I was already putting away some 2018’s and will now be adding the 2019’s as I find them. It is very sad about 2020 with the fires. Thanks.

JLuch · February 19, 2021, 8:48pm

Roy Piper posted a barrel tasting video of his 19 vintage and compares it to 2018 at the end. Very helpful as always.

FMansfield · February 21, 2021, 1:49pm

Awesome!

Jidhin_R · February 21, 2021, 6:07pm

Great video! Im excited to see how the 19 go overall. I imagine lots of people will over buy compared to normal given the 2020 woes, as Roy mentioned at the end. Especially given the very positive outlook of the’19 vintage.

NickRut · February 22, 2021, 12:41am

Sounds like 19 is similar in quality to 18 but a bit more concentrated. Another expensive vintage. Oh well.