Let’s play a little game (we’re in a gaming mood… just bear with us…)

If you had to draw up a Cult Cabernet wine formula, today’s wine might have all you need. Without the sky-high price, obviously. More on that in a minute…

All-estate, single-vineyard, remote mountain fruit from Spring Mountain. Super low production. Top-tier cellar treatment (including nearly two years aging in 80% new French oak.) An impeccable winemaker pedigree (say, previously working for a place like Harlan Estate.) Fantastic scores from the critics, as in TRIPLE the 97 points from Decanter, The Wine Independent, AND James Suckling.

You’d expect a wine like that to go for at least a couple of hundred bones per bottle. And congrats! You would be right. We basically just described Vineyard 7&8 Cab, bottles of which do go for well over $200.

Albeit that’s NOT the wine we’ve queued up here - though you could’ve fooled us, it’s just as good.

We’re talking about V. Vineyards’ 2021 ‘Audace’ Estate Cab, which sits just a short hop over the county line from Vineyard 7&8’s Napa Valley site, about a mile into the Sonoma side of Spring Mountain, within fairly close proximity to Hidden Ridge/Immortal Estate (remember that frenzy on this very site?!) Biggest difference is the release price: $125, about half of what those neighbors could set you back.

But (there’s always a but!), right now we have it for more than $65 off that price. And trust us, you are going to be very happy when this hits your lips.

Owners Gina and Steve Viets weren’t looking for wine fame when they bought the land that would become V. Vineyards; they were just looking for a quiet spot away from San Francisco to raise their kids. When they discovered that their hillside home once sported vines in the 1800s, they decided to rekindle its winegrowing past.

And they got serious about it immediately. They brought on Jean Hoefliger - the star protégée of Bordeaux wonder-consultant Michel Rolland (the guy who makes the final blends for Harlan, Screaming Eagle, Dalla Valle, Realm, you name it), while Hoefliger himself has helmed the cellars at Château Lynch-Bages, Newton, Alpha Omega, Harbison, and is known for Medlock Ames, The Debate, AXR, Merryvale, to name just a few. Saying that Hoefliger knows how to craft world-class Cabernet is like calling Mount Everest a speed bump. This guy has seen how the very, VERY best producers operate!

This 2021 Audace (meaning “bold”) Cabernet (with a smattering of Cab Franc and Merlot) is sourced entirely from V. Vineyards’ mountainous estate Ruby Vineyard, planted a dizzying 1,800 feet above sea level. And we can tell you firsthand that it very much lives up to its name. In the glass, it’s almost crow-black with a hint of purple at the rim—absolutely mesmerizing even before you get your nose into it. When you do get your nose into it, it’s even better: dried violets, savory cassis, pencil lead, sea salt, plum pie, and an overwhelming sense of sophistication. The palate has a serious WOW factor to it, with incredible flavors of red and black currant, wild blueberries, inky-deep structure and concentration, and a mineral finish that WILL. NOT. QUIT.

Only 6 barrels were made, our stash of this is even less, and dwindling… (I think Agent Red might be sneaking bottles out to his private cellar as we speak) so order up while you still can.

97 Points – Decanter “The Audace is a serious Cabernet with fantastic blackberry fruit, tobacco spices, and crushed violets. Beautifully medium to full-bodied with excellent black fruits, black olive, and dried herbs, layered with rich brown spices. The fruit profile strikes a stunning balance of purity of fruit flavors with an intensity matched only by the freshness of beautifully layered acidity, which drives the wine on the long finish of crushed mineral stones and rose petal florals. It is intense and elegant and one of the best expressions of this wine I’ve tasted to date. Drink 2024-2040.”

97 Points – The Wine Independent “The 2021 Audace, a blend of 96% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot, and 1% Cabernet Franc, is deep garnet-purple in color. It needs a little patient swirling to bring out notes of blackberry pie, warm cassis, and black cherry cordial leading to wafts of mossy tree bark and dusty soil. The full-bodied palate is densely packed with rich black fruits and savory sparks, framed by firm, grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and earthy. Drink 2026-2048.”

97 Points – James Suckling “Incredible aromas of raspberries and boysenberries with intense citrus undertones in the glass. A unique Sonoma cabernet. Brightness shining through. Drink in 2027 but already impressive as a young wine.”