1987 Clos du Val Stag's Leap Merlot

Clos du Val was founded by John Goelet, a New York businessman, in 1972 in the Stag’s Leap District of Napa Valley. Bernard Portet was the founding winemaker, and he was responsible for much of the winery’s rise in reputation in the 1970s and 1980s. He retired in 2010. The winery owns 320 acres in Stag’s Leap and Carneros, and is known for its Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Portet was among the first winemakers in the region to use Merlot to soften California Cabernet Sauvignon, and his wines were known for their elegance and finesse. Today Clos du Val’s winemaker is John Clews, and the winery continues to earn acclaim for its wine. Wine & Spirits Magazine named it Winery of the Year in 2010. The winery’s signature wine is the Stag’s Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon.

Stags Leap District AVA in southern Napa Valley has a storied history. It is home to Stag’s Leap Cellars, whose 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon won the famous Judgment of Paris blind tasting that included several of Bordeaux’s most exalted First Growths. Vineyards were started in area in the late 19th century, but the district’s rise in prestige started in the late 1960s when Nathan Fay planted Cabernet Sauvignon. Fay later sold his estate to Warren Winiarski, founder of Stag’s Leap Cellars. The district was given its own AVA designation in 1989, and today there are 1,400 vineyard acres. The AVA is especially notable because it was the first in the U.S. to be granted AVA status based on terroir. Its distinctive soils is a mix of volcanic soils, river sediment and loamy clay-like soil. Because the soils don’t retain water well, vineyards in Stag’s Leap tend to grow fruit with great intensity and flavor. Cabernet Sauvignon accounts for 95% of the grapes planted in Stags Leap.

The Merlot grape is such a deep blue that it is named for the blackbird. It’s an early ripening grape and one of the primary varietals used In Bordeaux. Merlot is also grown in the "International style," which is harvested later to bring out more tannins and body.