2018 Favia Carbone Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

We said it last year: We go to countless meetings, tastings, and trade events as CEO of Wine Access—but when we drink Andy Erickson and Annie Favia’s Carbone Cabernet, we do it purely as a fan. 

Raised in a stunning vintage, the critic raves are piling up around this wine: Jeb Dunnuck called it “a killer Cabernet that won’t break the bank.” (Our thoughts exactly.) James Suckling chimed in too, gushing over the wine’s “bright and effusive” aromas that “burst from the glass.” 

Our last offer made a ton of Favia fans out of Wine Access members, who adorned it with dozens of four- and five-star ratings. One member hailed it as “Fandrastic” (which we can only assume means “drastically fantastic”) and another showered it with some serious caps-lock love: “PHENOMENAL wine. Layers of red fruit, smooth tannins. LOVE this wine, surprised it is drinking so well so young!”

In short, the ‘18 Carbone boasts all the pedigree you’d expect from the talent behind Screaming Eagle, Arietta, Favia, Dalla Valle, and Ovid, and drinks like it costs double its price.

Like only the greatest Napa Cabernets, it does the impossible by balancing density with grace, fruit intensity with complex herbal notes, and near-term drinkability with fantastic cellar potential. This is the fourth vintage of Carbone, and we’ve loved every glass we’ve ever had.

Having put out some of Napa Valley’s most incredible triple-digit-priced wines and racked up 100-point scores and countless accolades, Andy and Annie are settled on their ranch in Coombsville. And now that they’ve returned the vineyards to glory and painstakingly restored the house built in 1886 (working in the tiny but fully updated ground floor cellar), they’re making the exact wines they want to make.   

The 2018 Carbone Cabernet is a perfect expression of Andy and Annie’s ethos—and their limitless skills. It’s rounded out with beautifully aromatic Cabernet Franc, and after aging in 50% new French oak for 22 months, it’s exactly the kind of red wine that made Napa Valley what it is, made Andy and Annie superstars in the Valley—and made us massive fans from the start. 

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

• ABV 14.80%
• 30 mins
• Now – 2037
• 77% Cabernet Sauvignon23% Cabernet Franc
• Serving temperature – 62°
• Cork