There are many reasons to visit Napa Valley. Beautiful landscapes, award-winning wines, famous distilleries, all contribute to making the valley a perfect tourist destination for both day trips from San Francisco and longer excursions for true-blue wine lovers. Well over three million visitors throng to Napa every year, making it one of California’s most popular destinations.
No doubt eager to attract this influx of incoming visitors, hundreds of wineries jostle for attention here, making it a tad bewildering to choose one particular favourite. While such big-name distilleries as V. Sattui Winery, Darioush Winery and Castello di Amorosa draw the lion’s share of footfall every day, we chose to dive a bit deeper and focus on a lesser-known family-owned winery named Stewart Cellars.
A young brand, which came into being only in 2000s, it’s entirely family-run by founder Michael Stewart, his son James Stewart, daughter Caroline Stewart-Guthrie, and son-in-law Blair Guthrie. With the family overseeing all aspects of the business, it’s quality and quality alone that is at the focus of this charming little winery. To ensure only the best-quality cuvees make it to the bottles, Stewart Cellars works solely with all six heritage vineyards by famous grape-grower Andy Beckstoffer, who is known for driving Napa Valley into the world-class grape-growing region it is today.
Though it’s a relatively younger winery, it is mainly its Cabernets that sets apart this particular maison. While their Slingshot range of Cabernet Sauvignons – younger, easier drink – would attract a wine novice, it’s Stewart Cellars’ Nomad collection that has the potential to catapult them to the big leagues. Particularly impressive is the 2016 Stewart NOMAD Beckstoffer’s Dr. Crane, which scored 97 points in acclaimed wine-critic Robert Parker’s rating. With flavours of vanilla, blackcurrant and coffee giving way to an oaky, long finish that lingers in the mouth with a velvety feel, it’s a truly layered full-bodied wine that is sure to be the highlight of any tasting.
Now, fortunately, you don’t really have to travel thousands of miles to lay your hand on this particular appellation or any others from Stewart Wines. Golden Gate Wine, a leading wine merchant in Hong Kong, brings to us the choicest of Napa Valley wines. For details, please visit their website.