Morgado Red Blend Sugarloaf 2018

A notable disciple of the Russell Bevan school of winemaking, Kimberly Hatcher has absolutely crushed it since starting her Morgado label. 96 POINTS for this luscious Bordeaux blend from a secret-weapon site in Napa’s revered eastern hills...do not miss it!

Kimberly Hatcher spent over two decades as a firefighter in San Francisco before “retiring” to work in wine. She started working under the legendary Russell Bevan (who has more hundred-point scores than we all have fingers on both hands) and immediately fell for the high-stakes, the one-shot-per-year rush of working harvest in the cellar. Today, the Morgado wines are made at Elyse, alongside her mentor’s watchful eye. At an UNREAL 42% OFF...this wine seriously delivers the goods at a fraction of the price of her competition (including Addax, PerUs, Lerner Project, and Russel's namesake label, all pushing three-digits!).

This show-stopping, rich, round, and structured red blend is 50% merlot and 50% cabernet franc – all hailing from the rocky hillside of Sugarloaf in southern Napa. A continuation of the Vaca Range (where you’ll find Howell Mountain, Pritchard Hill, Atlas Peak, and Stags Leap), Sugarloaf is a long-time secret weapon for making polished, elegant, yet powerful reds. Russell Bevan and Phillip Titus (Chappellet) are just two consistently high-scoring winemakers who sing the praises of the site. A rockpile of volcanic debris leftover from millions of years of volcanic eruptions (the Coombsville caldera is just down the slope to the north) this site has proven to be ideally suited for Bordeaux varietals – especially cabernet franc and merlot that benefit from the slower, more even ripening and longer hang-time of this cooler-than-most Napa region.

This wine deftly pays homage to her mentor's inky, concentrated, and highly polished stylings with beautifully aromatic sensations of black cherries, raspberries, red roses, blueberries, dark chocolate, bay leaf, pencil lead, saddle leather, and black peppercorns. The finish is generous and velvety smooth – coating the mouth and drawing out a long and hedonistically pleasing sip with impressive staying power. Perfect for the holidays...this year, next year, and even a decade from now. While it lasts!