"Stag's Leap Wine Cellars...the cab that rocked the French"

The French wine industry was the "undisputed heavy weight champion" of bordeaux style blended wines probably dating back to some of the first wines produced in that region.  That was until the historic Paris Wine Tasting of 1976.  One obscure winery in Napa, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, entered it's first estate vintage.  Much to everyone's amazement, this "unknown" winery claimed the top honors and turned the wine world on it's side!

Stag's Leap Wine Cellars was established in 1970 when a Chicago born, Polish American winemaker purchased a carefully selected 50 acre ranch.  Warren Winiarski, a winemaker that included stints at Souverain and Robert Mondavi as well as Ivancie Cellars in Colorado, purchased a vineyard owned by Napa Valley Cabernet winegrowing pioneer Nathan Fay.  With a little help from the Napa Master Andre Tchelistcheff, a wonderful first vintage was produced at the estate and in a commercial quantity.  This 1973 inaugural release was entered in the Paris Wine Tasting.

The Paris Wine Tasting for bordeaux's were extremely intense.  The white wine tasting had been conducted in the morning, with fellow Napa producer Chateau Montelena walking away with top honors.  Along with that, two other Napa producers scored in the top five.  The French were determined not to let their esteemed bordeaux suffer the same blow.  As recorded by George Taber, the all French panel tried selecting which wines were first of all "French" and then by way of their 1855 Classification, place the wines in accordance by ranking.

*The rankings and participants

*And the rest is history...

A bottle of the award-winning 1973 Stag'e Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon is on display at the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History in Washington, D.C.  In its November 2013 issue, the Smithsonian magazine included that bottle as one of the "101 Objects that Made America."

*You can see that bit of history in Napa too!

*Our lineup for the tasting included a 1995 SLV Cabernet

This winery has a newly renovated tasting room that offers spectacular views of their vineyards and is a must visit for all Napa visitors!  Thank you for the hospitality and generosity!

*Danny knows how to toast to a good time!

Cheers to Warren and his team at Stag's Leap Wine Cellars!

https://www.cask23.com/