Napa Valley Vinters Annual Auction and Sneak Peek at Epic 2023 Vintage

Photo courtesy of Collective Napa Valley.

Just a few months after February’s Napa Valley Premiere event, the influential non-profit organization Napa Valley Vintners (NVV) hosted their second and final major fundraising auction of 2024 as May segued into June. The annual auction included a barrel auction and a live auction event, featuring wines from 2023, 2022, and 2021—all still in barrel.

Hosted at the illustrious HALL Winery in St. Helena, the auction was a remarkable collaboration and showcase of the valley’s top talent, with 80 top prestigious vintners presenting barrel samples to 1600 eager guests. Alongside the tasting, attendees enjoyed food and desserts from local culinary stars like Angèle, Ciccio, the Charter Oak, Gott’s Roadside, Loveski Deli, FARM at Carneros Resort, and a personal favorite, Woodhouse Chocolates (which, incidentally, is not named after our own Domestic Wine Buyer Ryan Woodhouse!), among others.

In contrast to the more wine industry-centric Premiere event held in February 2024, the late-spring auction widens its invited attendees, uniting people from all backgrounds, wine industry or not, for a cause significant to Napa Valley. This past weekend, the impressive $4.8 million (and counting) raised will benefit youth mental health in Napa Valley schools and healthcare systems. The event also offered K&L’s team a glimpse at the upcoming vintages, notably the soon-to-be-celebrated 2023 vintage.The 2022 and 2021 vintage comparisons can be found in February’s Premiere post, and, after tasting several selections, this is a perfect opportunity to share the excitement around the 2023 vintage in Napa Valley.

The remarkable 2023 vintage in Napa Valley had the longest and most temperate growing season in over a decade. According to Vicki Denig of Decanter, the preceding winter's rains gave the stressed vines a much-needed respite, promoting the slow growth of a robust canopy. A long, cool spring led to a late bud-break that transitioned into a year with no major heat spikes. The moderate weather and extended hang time are expected to yield balanced and nuanced wines, with no concerns of high sugars without phenolic ripeness or subsequent increased alcohol content. With no significant rain or fires, the grapes ripened leisurely to perfection. The crop is bountiful as well, says Gray in his "stunning" vintage summary for Wine-Searcher. In short, 2023 is the talk of the town, and some are saying, the vintage of our lifetime.

The first wine I tasted at the barrel auction was the 2023 Arkenstone, and, while I hadn’t made it very far into the tasting, it stopped me in my tracks. It was already fantastic, with some aromatics and balanced tannins—not your average Napa Valley barrel sample. Overall, the 2023 wines in barrel were outstanding, and left me feeling incredibly impatient to drink more. I overheard a vintner say, “If you didn’t make a great wine in 2023, you should do something else.” Needless to say, from entry-level to elite, we are very much looking forward to the vintage’s releases.

Nine of the top 20 wineries garnering the highest bids at the auction featured the 2023 vintage. This is significantly more than the overall 32% representation of the vintage by comparison, and the 2022s were some powerhouse names to compete with. The top wineries showcasing their 2023 vintages were Lerner Project, Arkenstone Vineyards, HALL, Alpha Omega, Chimney Rock Winery, Parallel Napa Valley, Robert Mondavi Winery, Taplin Cellars, and Hourglass. While most of these wines will not be on the market for a few years, I eagerly await their release, with Arkenstone, Chimney Rock, and HALL wines particularly standing out, even at this early stage.

The top wineries presenting wines from the 2022 vintage were Chappellet Vineyard, Shafer Vineyards, Cardinale, Mending Wall, Pride Mountain Vineyards, AXR Napa Valley, Far Niente, O'Shaughnessy Estate Winery, Salvestrin, Roy Estate, and Davis Estates. While different cuvées, we are excitedly currently offering 2022s from both Chappellet and Hourglass, as well as Post & Beam who made an appearance at the tasting—see below for the links to what we have in stock.

2022 Chappellet "Mountain Cuvée" Napa Valley Bordeaux Blend $49.95
2022 Hourglass "HG III" Napa Valley Red Blend $44.95
2022 Post & Beam (Far Niente) Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon $49.95

We will excitedly await next year’s Napa Valley Vintners events, as well as the impending releases of more of Napa Valley’s very fine 2022s. While it will take a bit more patience, we will all be celebrating when Napa’s 2023s hit the market as well.

Save the Date for 2025

Wine enthusiasts are invited to mark their calendars for next year's Collective Napa Valley Auction weekend, taking place June 6-7, 2025. Michelle and Robin Baggett, owners of Alpha Omega winery, will serve as honorary chairs of the auction in 2025.

For more information about Collective Napa Valley and how to get involved in the wine auction weekend among other offerings throughout the year, visit www.collectivenapavalley.org.

- Chelsea Herholdt, Key Accounts Specialist