Most of us are attracted to labels. Marketing survey specialists Nielsen determined that “six of 10 consumers prefer to buy new products from familiar brands…because they signify quality and inspire confidence”. We are generally willing to spend more for shirts sporting an alligator logo and perfume produced in France.
We also spend more for wines vinified from grapes sourced in Napa Valley. Napa Valley grapes set the post Prohibition standard for quality Cabernet, and that perception of quality logically increased interest in Napa Cab. Inevitably increased interest in a product available in limited quantities in turn leads to an increase in price. A basic principle of economics is that increased demand for a product available only in finite quantities will ultimately lead to an increase in price. Eventually, the increase in price also generates a perception (often deserved) of quality. It is price that ultimately determined the classification of French Bordeaux from first to fifth growths. “Brokers from the wine industry ranked the wines according to a chateau’s reputation and trading price, which at the time directly related to quality”.
In Napa, this demand-price upward spiral has resulted in Cabernet grapes that, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture April 2019 report on the 2018 statewide grape harvest, pushed the average price to $7,500 per ton(up 6.6% from 2017). The price of Napa Cabernet grapes translates into an average of $75 per bottle, and a profit of $24,000 per acre. Obviously, the price widely varies from Screaming Eagle at more than $3,500, and Harlen Estate at more than $1,000, to Louis Martini in the $30 range.
Comparatively, a vintner can purchase a ton of Sonoma or Marin County Cabernet for approximately $2,800. According to Wine Searcher, the most expensive Sonoma County wines are Chardonnay (Peter Michel “Point Rouge” at just over $400 a bottle). The most expensive Sonoma Cab on the Wine Searcher list is Kamen’s Estate Kashmire selling at less than $200 a bottle. Interestingly, Napa’s Screaming Eagle has a 91 rating, while Sonoma’s Kamen was scored a 93. Lake County Cabernet generally sells for even less per ton.
One of the expensive Napa Cabernet options, and one of the finest, is Caymus Special Selection ($170 retail for the 2016) produced by the Wagner Family.
The Wagner Family helped pioneer Northern California wine. In 1906 Carl Wagner purchased Napa Valley vineyard land in Rutherford. By 1915 the family built a winery that would eventually produce 30,000 gallons per year just prior to Prohibition. Unfortunately, Prohibition shut down the winery. In 1941 the second generation of the Wagner Family (Charlie) and his wife, the former Lorna Belle Glos, purchased 73 acres of their own near the family farm in Napa and plant fruit trees. The orchards were not profitable and in the 1960s Charlie pulled the orchards and planted vineyards, including some with Cabernet Sauvignon clones “acquired from Stags Leap grown by Nathan Fay”. The new business model was not working. Charlie was preparing to “give up…and move to Australia”.
A pivotal moment then occurred in the history of Napa and for the legacy of the Wagner Family. In 1972, the third Wagner generation, represented by Charlie and Lorna’s son Chuck, joins the operation, not long out of high school, promises to make the enterprise solvent. The family ‘store’ becomes very solvent. They establish Caymus Vineyards and in 1975 released the first ‘Special Selection’.
Caymus Special Selection has twice been named Wine Spectator’s Wine of the Year and earned a slot on the magazine’s “Top Ten List” six times in nine years.
Today, the fourth generation of Wagner’s are making wine. Chuck’s son Joe launched Belle Glos (and eventually Meiomi Pinot Noir…eventually sold to Constellation Brands for $315 million). Chuck’s son Charlie develops Mer Soleil, including the popular Silver, an unoaked Chardonnay fermented in cement tanks. And, in 2013 daughter Jenny joined the family business and today is responsible for Emmolo (named for her mother) Sauvignon Blanc and Merlot.
In the late 1980s, the Caymus created Conundrum (eventually producing Red, White, Rose and Sparkling) blending multiple varietals into wines that are consistently agreeable from vintage to vintage.
The Wagners are in the forefront of both the wine history and the wine business of Napa Valley.
Okay…so you are saying that this post seems disjointed. I begin with a conversation about the price of grapes and then pivot to the Caymus and the Wagner family.
There is a connection…
Joy and I just returned from a driving trip from Charleston to Ohio, to the Catskills, to Westchester County New York, to New York City (see the musical Tootsie if the opportunity should present itself), to Washington D.C. (dinner with nieces now working there), and finally back home.
The trip provided the seeds for multiple posts, but we begin with Bonanza Cabernet Sauvignon Lot 1. It was wonderful to Steve Morrison and Jay Gruber of Sterling Cellars who shared many wonderful wines and were very interested in our reaction to this one.
Bonanza is, ‘surprise’, another Wagner product. But, it is also a unique wine.
As most of you known, virtually every wine, particularly reds, are the result of blending various varietals and various vineyards. Bonanza is also a product of blending. However, unlike blending just varietals and vineyards, Bonanza is the result of blending various vintages.
To be fair, the Wagner Bonanza is not the first wine to explore the blending of vintages. Champagne and Sherry producers have long followed this model. Distributors and retailers were suspicious of NV8 Cain Cuvee (a blend of the 1997 and 1998 vintages), but a positive reception by consumers mitigated those fears. Sean Thackrey’s XIX Pleiades (a blend of primarily Sangiovese, Voignier, Mourvedre from multiple vintages) earned 93 points from the Wine Enthusiast. Marietta has produced more than 50 vintages of ‘Old Vine Red’, a popular wine amongst many Sterling patrons.
The law permits wineries to blend as much as 5% from previous vintages into blends without referencing that addition to the blend. Understand…5% from a strong vintage to a weaker vintage may significantly, and positively, alter the consuming public’s perception of the weaker vintage. Cain Cuvee, Pleiades, and Old Vine Red simply extend their vintage blending beyond 5%.
The real issue is not vintage labeling, the issue is quality offered at a reasonable price.
The Wagners make excellent wine. Caymus (both the regular bottling and the Special Selection are outstanding); The Unoaked Silver Chardonnay is popular even among Chardonnay drinkers who would prefer a ‘buttery and oaky’ wine. Meiomi remains popular as a Constellation mainstay, and Belle Glos Pinot Noir is uniformly excellent. Good winemakers know how to make good wine.
With Bonanza, the Wagners have sourced excellent grapes from locations that are not as expensive as Napa. They can produce a wine that is hopefully (Lot 1 is the first vintage) consistently good at a price that is potentially attractive as an ‘everyday’ wine.
The first vintage offers a deep red color with floral tones, lightly toasted oak, and elements of dried dark fruit on the nose. The palate elements include the dried fruit with added hints of vanilla. There is also an element of sweetness (similar to Meiomi Pinot Noir). The tannins are soft, and the finish is medium in length.
Wine Searcher suggests an average national price below $25. And, keep in mind that Bonanza is worthy of a place in your wine rotation, you can often receive a discount from retailers by joining their wine club or by purchasing ‘unbroken’ or mixed cases. This is an excellent $20 California Cabernet value. You can find it in many of our favorite wine shops…Chan’s Wine World in Florida, Sterling Cellars in New York, and at most Total Wine locations.
The circular route that took us from South Carolina and through New York allowed us to visit with friends of many years. And, the trip also offered an introduction to new products. I will discuss many of them in the coming weeks.
In the meantime, considered trying Bonanza Cabernet Sauvignon Lot 1.