Louis Martini emigrated from Genoa, Italy to assist his father in making wine in San Francisco in the early 1900’s. The original winery in St Helena, founded in 1933 was restored in 2019 into a fashionable and cutting-edge facility. Louis Martini Winery may be best known for their hand-crafted style of artisan Cabernet Sauvignon.

Stagecoach is among the most iconic vineyards in Napa Valley. The site was originally founded by Dr. Jan Krupp and his brother in 1995. Resting above the fog line in the Vaca Mountains, the sub-soils consist of red volcanic rocks and boulders.


The 2019 Stagecoach is a more structured than the 2018. The concentrated entry of opaque fruit leads you to a rustic core of ripe blueberry compote and boysenberry fruit woven together with pencil shavings, crushed earth, anise and dark espresso. The tannins are ripe and finely grained leading you to a core of rich cream. This is a wine of power and strength that will only benefit from additional cellaring.

By W Peter Hoyne