Cellar Pack #1
Just imagine having perfectly aged wine waiting for you in your cellar. With our new "Cellar Pack" program, it takes just one click to stash away six wines for future enjoyment!
Intended to be opened in 2029, Cellar Pack #1 includes six ageworthy bottles, packed in a special flat storage case, with a sheet telling the story of each.
Think of it as a very kind gift to your future self. And, think about grabbing a pack or two as gifts for friends or for kids who are just beginning to appreciate fine wine.
Read on to see what we've picked for this inaugural Cellar Pack, then click on the Big Green Button to start planning for the future!
~ Artisan Willamette Pinot ~
2024 Granville "Basalt" Pinot Noir
Willamette Valley, Oregon
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This dense Pinot Noir deserves special mention, as it is one of the inspirations for our Cellar Pack program. While tasting through new releases with Granville's Ayla Holstein, she wrinkled her nose and commented on how great a vintage 2024 is and, while quite the wines are good now, how dramatically better they'll be showing in a few years.
Our "Cellar Pack" is an answer to Ayla's concern! The 2024 Granville "Basalt" Pinot Noir is bright and lifted with sophisticated layers of cranberry, flint, macerated strawberry, Chinese five spice, volcanic ash and dried violet petal flavors and a fine-boned tannic finish. It is so compelling now that most bottles will get consumed right away.
To fully experience its full beauty, however, requires allowing it a few years to rest. In three years, this gem from Ayla and Jackson's vineyards in the Dundee Hills and Eola-Amity Hills will be singing!
~ Napa Cabernet Classic ~
2021 Heitz Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley, California
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You could drink this beautiful 13.5% ABV Napa Valley Cabernet today and you'd enjoy it tremendously. In three years, however, it'll be softer, it'll be more nuanced and all its components will be more fully integrated. Simply put, it'll be more delicious.
"Remarkably pure and fresh. Pristine black cherry and blackberry, layered with beautiful violet aromas. Everything builds with precision and focus, supported by gorgeously firm, taut, mineral-rich tannins that bring energy and drive. The wine is compact and tightly wound at this youthful stage, its intensity truly emblematic of the vintage. Drinking Window: 2026 - 2060."
- 99 Points, Decanter (3/19/2025)
~ 2021 Barolo ~
2021 Damilano "Lecinquevigne" Barolo 2021
Piedmont, Italy
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In times gone by, lovers of Barolo would bury cases in their cellar for 10 to 15 years before even cracking the first bottle. With modern tannin management techniques, it doesn't take that long for Barolo to start strutting its stuff, and a few years really makes an impact. Kerin O'Keefe suggests 2029 as a year to start digging in. That matches spot on with Cellar Pack #1. Truly magical stuff from a wonderful producer, we're salivating with the idea of how good it will be in three years!
"Bold and beautiful, the 2021 Le Cinquevigne boasts intense aromas of violet, rose, perfumed berry, star anise and a balsamic whiff of eucalyptus. Smooth and vibrant, the savory, elegantly structured palate doles out ripe Morello cherry, raspberry, mint and licorice accompanied by taut, fine-grained tannins. Bright acidity keeps it balanced. Drink 2029–2039."
-95 Points, Kerin O'Keefe (5/2025)
~ Pure, Elegant Bordeaux ~
2022 Château La Commanderie Saint-Émilion
Bordeaux, France
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The big, bold reds of Bordeaux's St. Emillion region age magnificently. This pure, elegant expression of St. Emillion will be a total joy to experience in a few years' time!
"This showed beautifully from barrel two years ago and doesn’t disappoint today from bottle, and it has an incredibly floral character that I love. Ripe red, blue, and black fruits, truffly earth, spring flowers, and camphor all shine here, and it’s medium to full-bodied, has a concentrated, elegant, seamless mouthfeel, and ripe, integrated tannins. This gorgeous wine shines right out of the gate, yet it’s going to evolve positively over the coming 4 to 5 years and have two decades of overall longevity. While it shows the ripe style of the vintage, this is all about purity, finesse, and elegance and is incredibly well done. Maturity: 2030 - 2050."
- 93 Points, Jeb Dunnuck (2/27/2025)
~ Double 96-Point Cali Syrah ~
2021 Jaffurs "Bien Nacido Vineyard" Syrah
Santa Maria Valley, California
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On our spring trip to the Central Coast, this decadent Syrah stole our hearts. Earning multiple 96-Point reviews, we clearly are not the only ones to love it. It's so delicious now, and will be even more impressive when you dig into your Cellar Pack!
"Textbook vineyard notes of bright red, blue, and black fruits, ground pepper, iodine, and liquid violets all emerge from the 2021 Syrah Bien Nacido Vineyard (there’s 2% co-fermented Viognier, fermented with 50% whole clusters), a medium to full-bodied, absolutely seamless Syrah that has flawless balance in its acidity, tannins, and fruit, a concentrated, elegant mouthfeel, and a great finish. It picks up more of that classic Santa Maria sea breeze-like character with time in the glass, and this stunning Syrah will continue to drink spectacularly well for 10-15 years. Maturity: 2024 - 2039."
-96 Points, Jeb Dunnuck (8/15/2024)
"The 2021 Syrah Bien Nacido Vineyard is a dark, brooding wine. Inky dark fruit, lavender, licorice, chocolate, cloves and sage all caress the palate. A dollop of Viognier and 50% stem inclusion lift the aromatics. The 2021 is fabulous in every way. Most Bien Nacido Syrahs, especially those from colder years and/or with a high percentage of stems, are earthy and peppery, but this has terrific fruit presence. Drinking Window: 2025 - 2036."
-96+ Points, Vinous, Antonio Galloni (7/2024)
~ Ageworthy Oregon Chardonnay ~
2022 Purple Hands "Haakon/Lenai" Chardonnay
Dundee Hills, Oregon
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This is the only white wine in Cellar Pack #1, and it is a whopper. To say that Willamette Valley Chardonnay is on a roll is an understatement. It's no accident that so many Burgundy estates are continuing to invest in Oregon!
Made using old school Burgundian technique, this Haakon/Lenai Vineyards Chardonnay was intentionally exposed to high levels of oxygen prior to fermentation, which actually protects it during vinification and lends a unique, decadently layered texture that you typically only see in very high end bottles of white Burgundy. Really cool stuff here, and the winery feels it is a PERFECT fit your our Cellar Pack program!
"The 2022 Chardonnay Haakon Lenai Vineyard, matured in 30% new oak, is pure and expressive. It has ringing aromas of peach and guava, plus accents of roasted hazelnuts, hay and honey. The medium-bodied palate offers surprisingly concentrated, detailed fruit. It balances bright acidity with a touch of textural grip, and it has a long, expansive finish. Drink Date: 2025 - 2035."
-96 Points, Wine Advocate (7/3/2024)
