Brand New Release: Invest In 2019 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon

Napa Valley always attracts positive attention. This is of course due to the fact that the best Napa wines guarantee extremely high quality. In this case, the high quality is even spiced up with a particularly lucrative price.

The 2019 vintage of Spottswoode's first wine, their Cabernet Sauvignon, has just been released, so this is a unique opportunity to get in at the very beginning. Its predecessors have delivered great returns and the future seems bright for newest addition.

This is a classic investment case - a so-called no-brainer with a twist. 2019 Spottswoode received 100 points from Wine Advocate, which "disappeared" with Perotti-Brown's exit. Read more about that case, as well as the investment potential here.

Spottswoode Cabernet Saugvignon

Spottswoode Estate in Napa Valley dates back to 1882, but it was actually not until 1972, when Jack and Mary Novak took over the historic St. Helena estate, that the quality of the wines really reached top level. In fact, some would posit that their wine adventure and associated success emerged by accident.

The fact is, however, that they wanted a more rural life for their family, which included two adults and five children. So, they moved from San Diego to Spottswoode Estate and planted Cabernet Sauvignon grapes in the estate vineyards. They had now become winemakers, selling their Cabernet Sauvignon and Saugvignon Blanc to Heitz, Duckhorn, Robert Mondavi and Caymus, iconic names in California's wine mecca.

After Jack's death in 1977, Mary dedicated herself to winemaking, and she would become one of the most important wine makers in Napa Valley. Especially when she chose to produce her own Cabernet Sauvignon wine from the spectacular Spottswoode vineyards. And in 1982, she hired winemaker Tony Soter to help her on the journey toward making high-quality wine. The rest is beautiful history wrapped in high scores.

High scores that deserve their very own narrative in this investment case.

Returns On 2016 + 2018 Under Administration Of RareWine Invest

Although both 2016, 2017 and 2018 have received new scores, the quality is still sublime. Furthermore, the three vintages are rated at roughly the same level, so it is obvious to look at how 2016 and 2018 have performed in the RareWine Invest context.

Since January 2021, the 2016 vintage has increased 27.3%, while the 2018 vintage has increased 26.5% over the same period. This is in less than two years, which indicates two things: The price of SpottsWoode is low for its quality, and demand for Napa Valley's finest is high among the world's wine lovers.

According to Liv-ex, the trade share of US wine increased from 7.2% to 11.4% in July 2022, led by Spottswoode and Screaming eagle.

The above WA scores are all given by Lisa Perotti-Brown, and in fact Spottswoode is the only one of the above to have been re-rated by another WA reviewer. The others have retained their 100 Perotti-Brown points. This investment tip is about the 2019 Spottswoode Cabernet Saugvinon, and the same scenario seems to be playing out, though not all scores have been assigned yet.

Spottswoode is still the cheapest, and the quality, according to Perotti-Brown, is identical. According to wine-searcher.com, the cheapest offer on 2019 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon right now is €233^*, while the average price is €260. Your investment price is €225^*, so this is a unique opportunity to get involved right from the start, at a highly lucrative price. 

*Excluding VAT and taxes in whole cases and perfect condition.

RareWine Invest's Opinion

There is no arguing whether the 2019 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon can claim a 100-point rating, because that is a fact. That this case, in turn, highlights that professional critics have subjective preferences is interesting, but obviously not news. Lisa Perotti-Brown has been editor-in-chief of Wine Advocate for years and has been the medium's spearhead and specialist when it came to American wines. Without in any way undermining Joe Czerwinski, we cannot escape the fact that Perotti-Brown's voice in this matter carries weight.

But fortunately for this case, it does not matter whether you give more weight to Czerwinski's or Perotti-Brown's vote in this investment case. 100 points or not - this is still among the best in terms of scores.

What is most important here is that you can be involved right from the start. And at a price below the lowest price on wine-searcher.com. Add to that the fact that both the 2016 and 2018 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon have provided solid returns to investors. Now the 2019 vintage is on the block.