2019 Halpin Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

10:31 PM: Look who I found. 

12:46 AM: Deal of the year. 

1:17 AM: Call me tomorrow. Or tonight. Just call.

We’re no strangers to Halpin’s early morning texts, but these had us dialing his number before we’d even rolled out of bed. Pictured in the accompanying photos, slices of pizza in hand, was a mutual friend with ties to an estate that Vinous has called one of the “elite” estates of Napa Valley. The winery has racked up multiple 98- and 99-point scores.

Landing Cabernet from that particular estate requires one of three things: a connection, a silver tongue, or sheer luck. Halpin’s got all three. And the deal he struck on this highly coveted Cab reinforced what we already knew: No one creates opportunities out of thin air like Halpin.

The phenomenal 2019 Halpin Napa Cab mirrors the bold power and dark-fruit complexity of the source’s marquee bottles—wines Jeb Dunnuck has called “Pauillac-like.” The estate’s dry-farmed hillside vineyards produce minuscule yields of rich, concentrated Cabernet. 

This is land that Robert Parkerranked among the greatest terroirs in the Napa Valley. Halpin’s 2019 rendition represents its rocky slopes in all their glory, with aromas of dark fruit, cassis, and graphite previewing a palate with matching complexity—black currant with clove flavors, subtle floral notes, and supple tannins. 

It’s the result of something that would only happen to Halpin. The dude’s a legend.

• Fruit Intensity
• Oak Intensity
• Body
• Acidity
• Tannin

• ABV 14.50%
• 15 mins
• Now – 2026
• % Cabernet Sauvignon
• Serving temperature – 62°
• Cork