We know, Good Friday was last week. But today must be GREAT Friday. Because we are back with more of this 14-year-young Napa Cab!

Under $30, a long tumble from the $125 upon release?!

An OG, Wine Spies 1.0 winery, Young Ridge returns with a vengeance. We’ve NEVER been able to land one of their mature library releases - until today.

Perfectly cellared at the winery, made by a winemaker with a resume at Robert Mondavi, Beaulieu Vineyard, and Sterling… not just alive, but LIVELY, spritely, full of character. With nearly $100 OFF!!

Young Ridge has been at it since 1995 when founders LeRoy and Patty Young made their first Cabernet. Soon after, they bought a 99-acre parcel in Pope Valley and set to work building a full production facility.

They brought winemaker Julianna Beckmann Gosling on board to make the wines. She started her winemaking career at Robert Mondavi Winery, and after graduating from UC Davis, she honed her art at BV and Sterling. At Young Ridge, Julianna oversaw all aspects of viticulture and winemaking, shepherding the vines from vineyard to bottle.

And the vintage? Like one of the greatest ever and it shows! Vinous rated it 97 points and revisited it in 2020 with a Vintage Retrospective: The 2010 Napa Valley while reminding us that “the Vinous vintage chart rates 2010 as the top vintage for Napa Valley Cabernet between 1991 and 2013. As my recent retrospective tasting showed, they are overdelivering on their early promise as a fabulous vintage that combines the structure and energy of a cold vintage with the ripeness of a warm year. The wines are utterly brilliant, with deep colors, precise fruit, ripe tannins, and expressive aromatics. The best 2010 Cabernets are full-bodied, flamboyantly ripe, and also tannic.”

This at-peak beauty has held its color brilliantly with deep garnet spreading out to vibrant maroon at the edge. Even at 14, it has a robust core of deep red fruit - cherry compote, cassis and roasted red plums. Developing tertiary flavors of rich leather, figs, five spice, dark chocolate, and exotic woods straight from Thomas Jefferson’s library room. An incredible balance of fruit and savory elements with those smooth, resolved tannins make it a pleasure from the very first sip. Even the most jaded Cab lover will be blown away. Young Ridge’s ability to produce age-worthy wines astounds us. New York Strip. Top Sirloin. Filet Mignon. T-bone. It doesn’t matter what type. Put a steak on a plate and you’ll be happy.