7 Value Cabernets to Buy Now

By Food & Wine
Updated April 04, 2017
© Kobrand Corporation
Prices for even basic Napa Cabernets have skyrocketed, and that trend shows no sign of slowing. That’s why the wines below, all $40 or less, are great finds—and excellent examples of why we love the valley’s powerful reds in the first place.—Ray Isle
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2014 Robert Mondavi Napa Valley ($29)

© Constellation Brands Inc.

Classic Cabernet from a historic producer: Ripe blackberry fruit, polished tannins, richly flavorful. Winemaker Genevieve Janssens has been making some of the best wines of her career lately.

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2013 Coho Wines Old Poodle Dog Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($40)

© Steven Veit

Winemaker Phillip Corallo-Titus is the talent behind this minty, cassis-rich Cabernet. It’s supple, velvety and ideal for drinking now.

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2014 Buehler Vineyards Napa Valley Estate ($40)

© Rocco Ceselin

Buehler has long had an underground reputation for making top-flight Cabernets that sell for less than they ought to, like this elegantly structured, black cherry–rich bottle.

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2014 Round Pond Estate Kith & Kin Napa Valley ($32)

© Round Pond Estate

Star consulting winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown’s deft touch is evident here. Think dark plum flavors against brighter mulberry ones, with lingering tobacco notes.

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2013 Louis M. Martini Napa Valley ($38)

© Louis M. Martini Winery

This historic winery’s Cabernets have been on a roll lately, and this bottling is characteristic: saturated blackberry fruit; a touch of supple oak; and fine, dusty tannins on the finish.

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2014 Cultivar Napa Valley ($33)

© Cultivar Wine

Mocha oak and rich cassis fruit push this robust red to the riper side, but winemaker Julien Fayard gives it a finely balanced precision.

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2014 Sequoia Grove Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($40)

© Kobrand Corporation

If you want a $40 Cabernet that drinks like it costs $80, this is it. Powerful and extracted, with mocha-oak notes and dark currant fruit—yet it’s perfectly balanced.

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