2020 Morisoli - Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford (750ml)

Morisoli Vineyard is one of Napa Valley's longest continuously family run estates, with roots tracing to 1902 when Rocco and Lodovina Morisoli settled in Rutherford as sharecroppers. After Rocco's disappearance in 1910, Lodovina managed the farm alone and eventually purchased the land herself, securing the family's foothold through Prohibition by selling grapes for sacramental wine. Fifth generation Chris Morisoli began bottling a small portion of the family's Cabernet under their own label in 2018, working with consulting winemaker Joel Aiken to bring out classic Rutherford character from the property's best blocks.

The 53 acre vineyard sits on the Rutherford Bench, an alluvial fan built up over thousands of years from the Mayacamas range, bordering storied neighbors like Inglenook and Scarecrow. Only a tiny fraction of the estate's fruit, roughly two percent, goes into this bottling, sourced from the oldest Cabernet Sauvignon vines on the property. The wine ages in a majority of new French oak barrels for well over two years, a long approach that lets the site's well drained, gravelly soils show through.

The nose offers sarsaparilla, boysenberry, and earthy undertones, with a palate that balances freshness and richness in equal measure. Firm, structured tannins point to real aging potential. This wine pairs beautifully with grilled ribeye, roasted lamb, or aged gouda.