2014 Whitehall Lane Leonardini Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

We’ve been fans of Whitehall Lane since before Wine Spectator made the estate a household name with three wines rated in the top 5 of the Wine Spectator Top 100 Wines of the Year.

We were reminiscing over this fact and Whitehall’s status as the #1 selling Cabernet in Wine Access history over lunch at Mustards Grill in St. Helena, when we interrupted vintner Tom Leonardini with the tactless question we’re prone to asking: 

“Do you have any more of this wine? Can we get some?” we demanded mid-story, as this 2014 Leonardini burst from the glass with rich, ripe aromatics of plum and blackberry. Waves of ripe black fruit dominated on the palate, eventually yielding to soft notes of baking spices and dried florals. We apologized, but we couldn’t let a wine like this pass our members by. 

After taking a long, slow slip of this dramatic, high-toned Cabernet himself, Tom smiled. The rest is history. But what matters is that today this back-vintage red is available to Wine Access members. Whether you’re looking for a Cabernet to impress the guests or elevate a simple weeknight evening, this is it. 

When Tom Leonardini bought Whitehall Lane in 1993, even he couldn’t have imagined what was coming. Over the course of the next decade, Leonardini’s Cabernets became the rage of Napa Valley, with several back-to-back listings on Wine Spectator’s Top 100 Wines of the Year. The Cabernet Sauvignon that most turned the heads of James Laube and company came from a small 14-acre parcel above St. Helenawhere the soil is Cortina Gravely loam, the fruit deep and powerful—the spot that bears the family name.

The 2014 Leonardini comes from preferred rows in three of Whitehall Lane’s estate vineyards—Oak Glen Vineyard, Millennium MM Vineyard, and Leonardini Vineyard—hand-selected and picked at peak ripeness during the September harvest. The idyllic climate of the growing season resulted in the classic Cabernet, with its intense, deep color and balance among fruit, earth, and spice. In the cellar, winemaker, and industry veteran Jason Moulton used a mix of new and neutral French oak to age the Cab for 27 months, giving the wine a beautiful structure with endnotes of vanilla and baking spices.

After six years of resting in the idyllic White Hall cellars, it’s prime time to experience the grandness of this Napa Cabernet.

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

• ABV 14.80%
• 15 mins
• Now – 2030
• % Cabernet Sauvignon
• Serving temperature – 58°
• Cork