Mueller Family Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Diamond Mountain District Napa Valley 2019

The Mueller family makes tiny amounts of 100% cabernet sauvignon from their home and vineyard up in the exclusive real estate of Napa’s Diamond Mountain District. This utterly classic Diamond Mountain cabernet is a steal at full retail of $120...at our price?!? Exceptional!

From a microscopic 1.4 acre vineyard 1,100 feet up on Diamond Mountain, this garagiste winery production is less than 150 cases per year. That’s 6 barrels a year. SIX! And we got some!

The Mueller story is almost as good as the wines. Frank has been a treasured family physician here in Napa since the late 70s. His wife Angela, a nurse, and he always dabbled in home winemaking, making a batch here and there for a laugh until one day, their neighbor, Vincent Arroyo, showed Frank a property at the end of a treacherously narrow and winding rocky road up on Diamond Mountain. Frank jokes that the road was so bad, he had to buy the property just to turn his truck around. The first 250 vines were a surprise gift from one of Frank’s patients, sneakily planted by Jess Madrigal, while the remaining acre of plantings were won in a local school charity auction and just happened to be clonal selections of cabernet sauvignon from Spottswoode! (Only in Napa, right?) Things really got rolling with their first vintage in the epic 2007 growing season and they’ve been at it ever since.

The Mueller 2019 cabernet sauvignon is even better than the fantastic 94 pt. 2018 of theirs we featured last year...less inky, brooding, and mysterious, (comparatively, at least – this is still Diamond Mountain we’re talking about here!), but with much of the same dark berry and cherry core of luscious and ripe fruits, plus a bit of crunchy, black plum, and hints of roasted herbs and volcanic minerals. 86% cabernet sauvignon with 14% Petit Verdot makes for this compelling blend with barrel accents of mocha and vanilla leading to a silky smooth yet structured finish. More approachable than the 2018 (and indeed, any other 2019 Diamond Mountain cabernet we’ve tasted to date), this 2019 is as luxurious and elegant as top-name cabernets that go for nearly three times this price! As ever, this is scarcely seen outside of Napa and fiercely revered by any soul lucky enough to have experienced this Diamond Mountain Magic. Free shipping on just 3+ bottles makes this an ever greater steal that you surely won’t want to miss!

PAIRING IDEAS: Diamond Mountain cabernet always invokes this sensation of volcanic, mineral, almost primordial sensation that works perfectly with grilled mushrooms. Grab some big ol’ portobellos, fire up the grill and sear hot and fast like you would a steak. Once marked and slightly charred, turn them gill side up, load them up with chopped garlic, butter, herbs and peppers and let them roast over indirect heat until tender.