Vine Hill Ranch, 'VHR,' Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, California, 2021

Overview of the Wine
Napa Valley growers—Hopper, Whitton, Hahn, Taddei—have farmed Vine Hill Ranch since 1884, documenting their annual plantings of grapevines, plums, pears, and other crops in hand-scribed reports. Following the footsteps of those pioneering families, our maternal grandfather, Bruce Kelham, purchased the land in the late 1950s and began to cultivate winegrapes. The old grower records inspired our wine label’s ledger-style listing of vineyard blocks, vine count, harvest dates, and grape yields—a tribute to the agricultural history of Vine Hill Ranch.

We are proud to be part of a long line of independent growers who have farmed in Oakville over the past century. In 1978, our parents, Alex and Robert (Bob) Phillips, moved to the Napa Valley to raise our family on the ranch that our grandfather, Bruce Kelham, had purchased some twenty years earlier and christened Vine Hill Ranch.

Over time, Bob and Alex cultivated a vineyard of renown, producing exceptional grapes for a collection of notable Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon vintners. Our parents also dedicated themselves to land preservation and community organizations, including the Farm Bureau and Napa Valley Grapegrowers (NVG), an association pivotal in defining the valley’s appellation structure and protecting its rich agriculture resources.

In 2011, we were honored with the Napa Valley Grower of the Year award, the first awarded to a family, rather than an individual. Bob and Alex’s love for Vine Hill Ranch is now shared by the third generation. We feel profoundly blessed for our parents’ teaching the value of listening, learning, and caring for land and community—and for cultivating in us the heart of a grapegrower.

Winemakers
Bruce and Heather Phillips

Grape / Blend
100% Cabernet Sauvignon

Origin
Napa Valley, California

Winemaker's Tasting Notes
Singularly expressive, the 2021 VHR, Vine Hill Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon offers scents of freshly crushed black cherries, warm cassis, and juicy blackberries followed by hints of menthol, dark chocolate, licorice, and cinnamon stick, with a fragrant waft of violets. The full-bodied palate is densely laden with vibrant black fruits and loads of baking-spice sparks, framed by exquisitely ripe tannins and well-knit freshness with a long and lingering finish. This wine harmoniously showcases the individual attributes of each vineyard block to create a wine that is balanced, persistent, textural, and distinctive to our family’s vineyard in Oakville.

100 Points - The Wine Independent
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon rolls out of the glass with expressive scents of freshly crushed black cherries, warm cassis, and juicy blackberries followed by hints of menthol, dark chocolate, licorice, and cinnamon stick plus a fragrant waft of violets. The full-bodied palate is densely laden with vibrant black fruits and loads of baking spice sparks, framed by exquisitely ripe tannins and well-knit freshness, finishing very long and achingly perfumy. 946 cases were made.

98 Points - Jeb Dunnuck
Made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon and aged in 70% new French oak, the 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon VHR sports a dense purple hue to go with a stunning nose of blackcurrants, charcoal, leafy tobacco, and violet. This beauty is full-bodied, rich, concentrated, has a great core of tannins, and a killer finish. This will probably merit a triple-digit rating in 5-7 years and is a brilliant wine as well as a possible 30+-year legend in the making. 

98 Points - James Suckling
Lots of black fruits, lead pencil, graphite, and ink pot. Currants. Black earth. Some bark. Medium-bodied with chewy yet polished tannins with a minerally undertone. Hints of black mushrooms. Juicy and reserved at the end. Lots of freshness and structure at the same time. Good grip in the finish. Try after 2026.

98 Points - Wine Advocate
VHR's 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon is another fabulous wine from the Phillips family and winemaker Françoise Peschon. On the nose, it's a bit restrained, with a subtle herbal perfume, hints of peppery spice and a concentrated mix of red and black cherries. In the mouth, the wine is similarly composed and polite, being medium to full-bodied, silky and taut in feel, balanced and elegant on the lingering finish.

98 Points - Vinous
The 2021 VHR Cabernet Sauvignon is super polished. Freshly cut flowers, rose petal, lavender, and spice lend notable aromatic presence to the silky, nuanced wine. This is one of the most elegant wines I can remember tasting here even with the low yields and tiny berries. Silky, perfectly ripe tannins wrap around a core of red-purple fruit. Medium in body and wonderfully refined, 2021 is shaping up to be a gem. It is, quite simply, magnificent. My tasting at Vine Hill Ranch was one of the highlights of the time I spent in Napa Valley this fall. The wines were just sublime. Longtime winemaker Françoise Peschon crafts one of the most classically elegant Cabernets in Napa Valley, as evidenced by her superb 2021.

98 Points - Wine Spectator
A deep well of gorgeous raspberry, boysenberry, mulberry and black currant preserve flavors sparkle in this red, with anise, violet and wood spice hints throughout. All that is riveted to a terrific graphite spine running from start to finish, where a flash of cast iron peaks in. As the fruit lingers, a subtle echo of hibiscus provides a suave counterpoint. This wine encapsulates the best aspects of the vintage.

Product size: 750ml