Psst… you want to know a little secret?

That winery you love so much, Elyse? It’s named after their daughter.

But they also have a son. And to be fair, they helped him launch a small winery project named Jacob Franklin. Originally it was under the Elyse umbrella, up until the recent sale of the Elyse brand and now the family selected it to continue the legacy, while Elyse reincarnated under new ownership with Russell Bevan taking over the winemaking.

“Elyse Winery, a steadfast figure in a small, but notable, corner of Napa wine, has traded hands.” – Napa Valley Register, November 2018

Now for the best part. We scored this 95 pointer, 2014 Estate Cab for a body rockin’, bone crushin’ 53% off! A Cabernet that Tastings.com called “impossibly well integrated… serious, cult-worthy.” Already a fairly respectable value at $75 but today, from Wine Spies at $35 this stuff kicks major butt and takes on big-name, blue-chip wineries all over the Valley.

This is pure Estate fruit, sourced from Hoffman Lane Vineyard. Precisely where Elyse’s tiny little winery sits (highly recommend visiting if you’re in the area - make an appointment first though as with Bevan at the helm they have been inundated). This wine comes exclusively from Cabernet vines right there. It’s actually the only Jacob Franklin Estate wine, so you can imagine the pride they take in crushing it.

Smooth, inky, and ripe. A modern style for sure. Comes packed with plum, blueberries, black raspberry, and black tea leaf aromas, with some torrefaction, and some sweet granola action too. The finish is pure cult level Napa Cab bliss, prolonged with superbly delineated fruit, scrumptious depth, and luxurious oak spice. Give this an hour or two of air, and REVEL in the glory.

Jacob Franklin makes minuscule quantities of wine, and we tried desperately to get enough of this. But, prime single-vineyard Napa Cabernet at this price… you know it goes by now.

95 Points – Tastings.com

“Black garnet color. Aromas and flavors of ripe damson plum, black raspberry, black tea, violet, espresso, roasted hazelnuts, and eucalyptus with a velvety, vibrant, dry-yet-fruity medium-to-full body and a smooth, elegant, medium-long finish displaying shades of bergamot with moderate oak flavor. An almost impossibly well-integrated wine that offers a seamless mélange of fruits, flowers, nuts and herbs; lifted, serious, cult-worthy.”