The Napa Cabs You Should Try if You Don’t Like Big, Jammy Wines

In their heyday, Napa Cabs were nothing like today’s stereotypical version. The flower-power vibe of the 1970s was apparent in the rough-around-the-edges, lively, vegetal, and experimental Cabs of that period. Then came the critic Robert Parker and the development of winemaking technology — two forces that influenced winemakers and consumers alike to acquire a taste for bold, high-alcohol, jammy expressions. In turn, the term “Napa Cab” has become almost entirely synonymous with these teeth-kicking reds.

Some current winemakers in the region, however, are reverting to the very style that earned Napa Cabs their initial fame. These producers prefer acidic, vibrant, herbaceous wines and are showing consumers that Cabernet Sauvignon is more versatile than most people think. If you’re looking for something more elegant — or even if post-’70s, bold Napa Cabs are your thing — here are five Napa producers that are ushering the region’s old-school style into the new age.

Corison

Cathy Corison founded Corison in 1987 when she began purchasing and vinifying Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from vineyards in the Rutherford and St. Helena sub-AVAs. She, along with her husband William Martin, purchased her first estate vineyard in 1995 and second in 2015 — both located in St. Helena. Corison and her team perform a number of steps in the vineyard to ensure their wines will be light and elegant. For instance, they carefully manage how much leaf coverage each grape cluster gets to yield the ideal amount of acidity and keep sugar levels tame. In turn, Corison’s Cabernets are marked by their notes of bright berries, herbs, and cured meat.

Frog’s Leap Winery

John Williams and Larry Turley pressed the first harvest of Frog’s Leap Winery grapes — Sauvignon Blanc — in 1981, but the winery, located in the Rutherford sub-AVA, didn’t debut its estate Cabernet Sauvignon until 2014. A little over a decade later, the winery is known to offer one of Rutherford’s purest takes on the red grape. In the cellar, Williams and Turley minimize sulfites and filtration to allow the wines to express themselves naturally. These Cabs are powerfully rustic with notes of wild berries bouncing on the palate, slightly mellowed by a forest-floor undertone. Frog’s Leap crafts a rich yet elegant structure by balancing tannins with acidity.

Matthiasson Wines

After working in sustainable agriculture, Jill and Steve Matthiasson founded Matthiasson Wines in 2003 in an attempt to bring the eco-conscious farming ethos they’d learned into winemaking. Now, Matthiasson farms eight vineyards across Napa. The farmers-first, winemakers-second duo is nimble in the cellar: They don’t have a set vinification process, instead making instantaneous decisions about crafting their wines based on the profile of the grapes after each harvest. On its website, the winery states that its “goal is to bring back the Napa Cab of yore.” It does so by leveraging native yeasts and minimizing the amount of sulfites added to its expressions. As a result, Matthiasson’s Cabernet Sauvignons are vibrant and balance red fruit with a bell-pepper herbaceousness.

Mayacamas

German immigrant John Henry Fisher planted the first vines and built the winery on what is now the home of Mayacamas Vineyards in 1889. It was officially given its current name when husband-and-wife duo Jack and Mary Taylor bought the property in 1941. The two were also the first to plant Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon there. Mayacamas’s plots are some of the highest-altitude vineyards in Napa. The cool-climate exposure, as compared to vineyards down in the valley, yields brighter, more acidic fruit. Decisions made in Mayacamas’s cellars, where the fruit is fermented in cement instead of new oak — a common method in Napa — to help retain the energy and vibrancy of the grapes, also help produce such lively Cabs. As a result, these wines are well balanced, showcasing both a depth and brightness of fruit.

Smith-Madrone

Stuart Smith founded Smith-Madrone atop Napa’s Spring Mountain in 1971 when he was just 22 years old. Now he helms the vineyard — which is located on steep, high-altitude slopes — and winery along with his brother Charles. In Smith-Madrone’s Cabs, expect aromas of red fruit to jump from the glass before giving way to a herbaceous palate with floral and peppery notes. The winery’s take on Cabernet is typically full-bodied, in part a result of the use of barrel fermentation, but not overwhelmingly so. A gripping acidity tends to come at the end to refresh the palate.

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