“This wine hits all the pleasure points on the palate.” – The Napa Wine Project

🎵 dun dun dun-dun-dun dun dun dun 🎵

Aaaand it hits big with fresh 96-points from Decanter to be published soon…

Howell Mountain. Atlas Peak. Coombsville. Three choice appellations. The flawless, must-have 2019 vintage and a Reserve made by a former Silver Oak enologist with over 70% OFF… from $175 all the way down to under $50.

A sneak peek at what we loved about this wine… plush, dark fruit, full-bodied and ripe, structure quietly weaving through every sip.

Meet the contestants:

—Bachelor Number One: Jason Ray, Napa Valley Vineyard Manager farming 1,500 acres of elite fruit for Grgich, Stags Leap, and Montagna to name a few…

—Bachelor Number Two: Laura, a super taster and classified, even to herself

—The Matchmaker? Winemaker Massimo Monticelli… the partition dropped, and nobody went home alone.

Stråla - Swedish for “to radiate, to shine brightly, to beam.” The Rays named it that. Their last name is Ray. ☀️

Massimo couldn’t care less about scores. He cares about what’s in the glass. And if we could use the F word, we would - so let’s just keep it PG-13 (OK, make that R) and call it ridiculously delicious and leave it at that. And why? Impeccable palates, incredible fruit sources and an incredible matchmaker… who knew winemakers can be great matchmakers too? 😂

Laura is a super taster. Wired differently than most: flaw detection, complexity dissection, blending balance. The kind of palate that makes credentialed tasters quietly insecure. She proved it by walking into a blind tasting at the CIA in St. Helena, sitting down next to a room full of Master Sommeliers, and walking out winning. She got a call the next day with a job offer.

While selling barrels around Napa, she lands in the orbit of Massimo Monticelli, a 4th-generation winemaker, UC Davis-trained Silver Oak alum. Great-grandfather: winemaker in Pistoia, Tuscany. Father: Gallo lifer who ran their premium wine division for years. That DNA runs deep in the Monticelli family. Next, Massimo introduces Laura to Jason Ray (you know, Bachelor Number One with access to cream of the crop Napa vineyards) an they end up getting married. They also started Strala, and of course, Massimo made the wine.

2019 is his last vintage at Strala before they shook hands with the venerable Maayan Koschitzky. Four generations of winemaking blood have a way of pulling you back to your own label with a brother. He also makes wine for B. Wise, BRION, Burly, and KrisTodd Vineyards on Howell Mountain.

Deep ruby, nearly opaque in the glass. The nose opens with dark cherry, blackberry, dark chocolate, and a whisper of dried bay leaf. The palate is where it gets seriously plush and velvety, dark plum and cassis front and center, with graphite and a subtle umami thread underneath, giving this Cab real depth. The tannins arrive later on the finish but with purpose, framing this full-bodied wine. What stands out is the lingering close that just keeps inviting you back in. Addictively awesome. 😋

Decant time - about an hour. Because even the best dates need time to get dressed.

Had it the other night with lamb marinated in cumin, coriander, oregano, and garlic. Seared and finished in the oven! YUM!!!

Three AVAs, one vintage, one great winemaker before passing the baton over to the next great one, and the best date you’ll close all year.

96 Points – Decanter “The 2019 Strala Reserve is bold, dark-fruited, with towering tannins and inky dark fruit with resonant mineral underpinnings. Great energy and tension, a firm spine of acidity, and finishing with crushed cocoa nibs nuances and nicely integrated toasty oaks spices that bring a sweetness to the lasting finish. Drink 2026-2036.”