Screaming Eagle is one of the original Californian "cult wines". Proprietor Jean Philips never dreamt that her wine would be so sought after, when in 1992, after years of selling grapes to Napa Valley wineries, she decided to find out if her home-made wine, created in a plastic trash can, was any good. She took a sample down to Robert Mondavi where they thought enough of her dark, rich, cassis-flavoured Cabernet to encourage her to bottle it, though they snickered at her proposed name. The rest is history.
Berry Bros. & Rudd
Experience…
Screaming Eagle ‘The Flight’ Merlot Cabernet 3 Vintage Vertical
2020 98 Points, Jonathan Cristaldi, Decanter
2017 99 Points, James Suckling, jamessuckling.com
2015 98 Points, James Suckling, jamessuckling.com
“…it must be the greatest merlot-based wine ever made in America.”
- James Suckling on the Screaming Eagle ‘The Flight’ Merlot Cabernet
Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon 3 Vintage Vertical
2022 98 Points, Jonathan Cristaldi, Decanter
2015 100 Points, Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com
2012 100 points, Rob Parker, The Wine Advocate
…Amongst 11 Wines…
Friday, May 1st
Screaming Eagle: Vertical Dinner
Hosted by: Armand de Maigret, Estate Manager of Screaming Eagle
Dinner: 6.30pm | 11 Wines and 4 Courses | $1,955 per person
(Limited to 12 guests maximum)
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Screaming Eagle's 100% Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard is ideally situated. The soil is virtually a rock pile on a gentle, west-facing slope east of the Napa River. Drainage and exposure are excellent. The property is at a point in the valley where the weather is hot enough during the day to ripen Cabernet to its optimum, yet the grapes are cooled by the afternoon breezes that blow north from San Pablo Bay.
Only 500 cases a year of Screaming Eagle are produced under the direction of winemaker Heidi Peterson Barret. The resulting wines are brimming with deep, plush layers of flavour, echoing currant, cassis, blackberries and black cherry. The tannins are soft, round and polished, yet firm enough to give every indication that Screaming Eagle wines will age beautifully for 10 to 20 years.
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A couple quick thoughts about Screaming Eagle: it’s one of the most expensive wines in the world, as you probably know, but it is also one of the greatest without thinking about the price. I was gobsmacked by the two Screaming Eagle wines of 2018, particularly “The Flight.” It’s mostly merlot with some cabernet franc, and it competes with the best of Pomerol. In fact, the 2018 is the twin of the great Chateau Lafleur and it must be the greatest merlot-based wine ever made in America. In addition, the 2020s in barrel at Screaming Eagle are top quality and will be at the same level, or very close, as 2018 and 2019. Nick said they picked their grapes in 2020 right after the first fire began and it wasn’t a problem. I didn’t detect any smoke taint, and the quality was fantastic from what I tasted. I am interested to taste the final blends next year.
On Arrival
NV Delamotte Brut Champagne
This graceful Champagne is fine and creamy on the palate, with delicate notes of Gala apple, baked white peach, preserved lemon and white blossoms enmeshed with a rich underpinning of toasted brioche and smoked almond that lingers on the finish. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. Drink now.
92 Points, Alison Napjus, Wine Spectator
First Course
2022 Jonata Flor Flower Sauvignon Blanc
A complex, layered and age-worthy white that is so tangy, fruity and mineral-rich at the same time. Chalky, citrusy and saline flavors on a medium body. Blended with 15% semillon. Fresh, linear, crunchy and long in the finish. Has a reputation for developing well with time.
95 Points, James Suckling, jamessuckling.com
2022 Screaming Eagle Sauvignon Blanc
Screaming Eagle’s Sauvignon Blanc has become one of America’s most coveted white wines. Produced alongside the estate’s famed Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon, the white bottling comes from a tiny parcel that mirrors the precision and scarcity that made the estate a cult icon in the first place. Owned by Stanley Kroenke, Screaming Eagle releases its wines exclusively through a closed mailing list, leaving collectors to compete intensely for both the Sauvignon Blanc and its legendary red.
K&L Notes, klwines.com
Second Course
2021 Jonata 'El Alma de Jonata' Cabernet Franc
The 2021 El Alma de Jonata is dense and powerful, but also very young. There is some youthful austerity that needs time to soften, and yet all the elements are so well balanced. Dark red/purplish fruit, blood orange, cedar, mint and spice all race throughout this sumptuous, super-expressive Cabernet Franc-based blend. Franc aromatics are especially prominent on the finish. Give this time.
96 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
2021 Jonata 'El Desafio de Jonata'
The 2021 El Desafio de Jonata is quite high in Cabernet Sauvignon (96%) in this vintage, and that is exactly what comes through. Dark fruit, tobacco, incense, scorched earth, minerals and dried herbs all race across the palate. Calistoga meets Saint-Estèphe in Ballard Canyon. El Desafio is one of the most impressive wines I tasted this year in Santa Barbara. I can't wait to see how it ages.
97+ Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Third Course
2020 Screaming Eagle ‘The Flight’ Merlot Cabernet
Screaming Eagle’s ‘The Flight’ is positively gorgeous in 2020, leading with a plethora of perfumed violets and wild herb notes intermixed with graphite and cedarwood spices. Mediym-bodied offering a purity of redberry fruit flavours redolent of cranberry and raspberry alongside dark cherry, all framed by tantalising acidity. The crunchy red fruit is balanced by a dazzling minerality, opening up to reveal blood orange, brown spices, spearmint, and pops of lovely blue floral notes. Broad tannins build in stature on the long, sanguine finish.
98 Points, Jonathan Cristaldi, Decanter
2017 Screaming Eagle ‘The Flight’ Merlot Cabernet
Aromas of spice, green olives and hints of herbs. Dark berries. Dried-berry notes, too. Medium to full body, firm tannins and a fresh, vivid finish. Succulent and delicious. Savory. Flavorful and subtle. This may be the wine of the vintage. Really want to drink it!
99 Points, James Suckling, jamessuckling.com
2015 Screaming Eagle ‘The Flight’ Merlot Cabernet
This is very tight grained and beautifully balanced with violets, crushed stones and a brambleberry character. Extremely aromatic and perfumed. Medium to full body with a compressed mouthfeel of wonderfully fine and fresh tannins. A fantastic Merlot-based red for the vintage. Structured yet so balanced.
98 Points, James Suckling, jamessuckling.com
Fourth Course
2022 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon
The 2022 Screaming Eagle is superbly perfumed, bursting with rose, rose stem, and violets. The tannins are silky and refined, reminiscent of 2018, with less grip and more sleek finesse—here, satin takes precedence over velvet. Ripe mulberry fruit, sandalwood, and coriander add layers to the medium-bodied palate, which is energised by saline-acid tension and remarkable balance. As the tannins melt seamlessly, notes of cocoa powder and cool slate crispness linger, enhancing the wine’s precision and elegance. The result of careful, patient winemaking and extreme sorting, this 2022 vintage delivers remarkable poise despite the challenges. Fermented in large wood foudres, concrete, and stainless steel, then aged 20–22 months in 69% new French oak, it is a stunning achievement. It may not be the longest-lived Eagle, but it's one to enjoy earlier in life. (“In a twisted way, vintages like this excite me a bit,” says Nick Gislason, winemaker at Screaming Eagle.
98 Points, Jonathan Cristaldi, Decanter
2015 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon
The 2015 Screaming Eagle is another monumental wine from this address, and it's one of those cases where if you can afford it, you should buy it. ... this magical elixir boasts a deep purple color as well as a blockbuster bouquet of blueberries, creme de cassis, violets, incense, and cedarwood. Reminding me of the 2015 Château Margaux with its off the charts class and purity, it’s full-bodied, thrillingly textured, and has a finish that just won't quit.
100 Points, Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com
2012 Screaming Eagle Cabernet Sauvignon
The perfect 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Screaming Eagle is composed of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc. Made in the classic, iconic Screaming Eagle style that the original proprietress, Jean Philipps, first showcased in the early 1990s, before the winery was sold to Stan Kroenke, the inky/purple-colored, seamless 2012 possesses an extraordinary set of aromatics consisting of pure blackcurrant liqueur, licorice, acacia flowers, graphite and a subtle hint of new oak. Full-bodied, opulent and voluptuous, this profound wine is as prodigious as I thought it would be last year when tasted from barrel.
100 points, Rob Parker, The Wine Advocate