Deep ruby color; blackberry, boysenberry, mulberry, strawberry jam, black cherry, fig, raspberry, mocha, baking spices, lavender on the nose and palate.
Dry; tasty, fine-grained tannins with balancing acidity (3.7 pH). Smooth, easy drinker. Full body, good structure with depth and vibrancy. Dense, full in the mouth. Blend of 89% cabernet sauvignon, 4% merlot, 3% petit verfot, 2% malbec, 2% cabernet franc. Aged in French oak, 33% new, for 15 months for appropriate oak nuances. 14.8% ABV
Beringer prides itself on being California’s oldest continually operating winery. It began in 1875 when Jacob Beringer and his brother Frederick purchased land and became one of the first Napa Valley wineries. Beringer survived Prohibition by making sacramental wines for churches. At end of Prohibition, Beringer became the first winery to offer public tours, starting the Napa Valley tourism era.
In 1967, the 91-year-old Beringer Winery received State Historical Landmark designation. Five years later, the Rhine House on the property was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. In 1990, The Wine Spectator named Beginger’s cab the wine of the year, and six years later, a Beringer chardonnay took the same honor. Beringer is the only wine maker to have both a red and white named The Wine Spectator’s wine of the year.
Mark Beringer, the great-great-grandson of founding brother Jacob Beringer, is the winemaker. Mark earned a degree in enology at California State University–Fresno, then started his career at Benziger. Later, he joined Duckhorn and became VP of winemaking. He next went to Artesa as VP and winemaker.
In 2015, Mark came back to his Beringer beginnings as chief winemaker to follow in footsteps of Laurie Hook, now winemaker emeritus. “I’m absolutely thrilled to be making wines for the very winery that my ancestor built, and be part of the next chapter in this important story of Beringer and of the Napa Valley,” Mark notes on the winery’s website. This 2021 vintage was Mark’s last at Beringer. He left Beringer to work in a smaller winery in British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley to do more hands-one winemaking. Ryan Rech is the winemaker today at Beringer.
Beringer is a brand of Treasury Wine Estates, an Australian-based global winemaking and distribution operation that traces its roots to Penfolds Wine and Foster’s Group beer. Treasury is a major international player in the wine world, making wine in 12 countries, selling more than 35 million cases of wine a year, and generating more than $2 billion in sales. Labels you may recognize include Sterling, Stags’ Leap, Beaulieu Vineyard, Beringer, Chateau St. Jean, Acacia Vineyard, Blossom Hill, Rosemount, Walking Dead, 19 Crimes, Greg Norman Estates, Lindeman’s, Wolf Blass, and their flagship—Penfolds.
Beringer Knights Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2021—consistent, well-made cab. Drinks like a Napa, priced like a Sonoma. Solid, go-to rich red wine play year after year. Dark fruits with plenty of accompanying tastes and textures; admirable complexity for wine in this price range. Sound, harmonious, just now moving into its best drinking window.
Pair with red meat dishes—excellent with ribeye, filet mignon, grilled flank steak, braised short ribs, heavy beef stew. Grilled lamb chops, rack of lamb. Game meats—roasted duck with blackcurrant fruit sauce, venison, wild boar. Mushroom risotto, stuffed mushroom, grilled portobello mushroom, rich pasta dishes with or without meat protein. Cheese—aged gouda, aged cheddar, parmigiano-reggiano, gorgonzola, gruyère. $25-35
