Favia, Cerro Sur, Napa Valley

Napa Quick Trip 2026; 1/10/2026-1/14/2026 (San Francisco and Napa) : Coravin pour, 2 hr in the glass before drinking. CS/CF/M blend from Rancho Chimiles IIRC. Red cherry and intense floral nose, red fruit and cedar on the palate. Leaner than past years, yet still clocks in at 15%. I think AG got this one spot on.

2 days in the Valley with the Texas Tiger; 1/11/2026-1/12/2026 (Napa Valley) : See Geaux’s TN for aeration info. Mostly red berries, earthy herbality, mixed red and darker florals, cedar. Savory, earthy and soulful, if still not totally open. Already excellent with the potential to get to what prior vintages of this bottling have achieved (96-99). Solid 94-95+ for me on this day.

Painfully young at this point. Saline, blood, and bursting ripe red fruit. Suave and smooth on the palate with terrific density. Needs 5-10 years.

color : deep ruby core, pale rim nose : red currant, black pepper, milk tea, some fresh herbal green note palate : moderate tannin/medium + acidity drink now or keep it 5 years more rate : 96+

94/95 Elegant, red fruity, floral, some green notes

Dark ruby color. Blackberry, blueberry, charred wood. Medium tannins and acidity. High alcohol. Long finish. Delicious! This could be the best wine I taste all year, and it’s only January.

My group was told that Favia is generally still sampling the 2017 wines for clients, but Andy had reasons to open the 2018 bottles in the morning and as a result we were the beneficiaries as we were told that we were the first consumers to taste the 2018 Favia lineup. We were overlooking the vineyards next to the beautiful property as we sampled this lineup so the notes are a little lean given that I was "distracted". Big aromatic …