The most sought after California CultWine in the World! This small operation is located just below the Dalla Valle vineyard near the Oakville Cross. Screaming Eagle's Cabernet Sauvignons are going to create quite a stir among lovers of that varietal - if they are able to latch onto a bottle or two. The estate is owned by Tony Bowden and Jean Phillips, one of Napa Valley's leading real estate agents. With the help of Heidi Barrett and Gustav Dalla Valle, this operation's debut vintage is the extraordinary 1992 Cabernet Sauvignon, one of the greatest young Cabernets I have ever tasted. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered, and aged in 60% new oak.

Notoriously difficult to secure due to an incredibly small production and an extensive direct-to-consumer waiting list, Screaming Eagle wines are the most highly coveted California Cabernet in the world. The grapes from Screaming Eagle’s small, 57-acre Oakville plot were originally sold to other Napa Valley wineries until 1992, when, after sharing a homemade batch with the nearby Robert Mondavi Winery winemaking staff, Jean Phillips, Screaming Eagle’s original owner, realized the potential in her property’s then 80 vines. The unusual name of the label symbolized determination to Phillips in her pursuit to make the greatest wine possible. The winery has not yet fallen short of this pursuit, as its wines consistently reach near perfect, if not perfect, status according to reviewers like Lisa Perrotti-Brown of Wine Advocate, who rated the 2016 and 2015 vintages 100 points for their ability to leap out of the glass with layered notes of black fruit, floral, and minerals, vibrancy, and depth. 

The original proprietor, Jean Phillips, has moved on, and the new sheriffs in town are Stan Kroenke and Charles Banks who also own the up and coming superstar, Santa Ynez winery, Jonata. A lot is going on at Screaming Eagle as much of the 54-acre vineyard is being replanted, and a new wine cellar is under construction. Production for the following three vintages runs from a low of 400 cases of the 2005, to approximately 800-900 for the 2007, which is their projected target for future vintages. Beginning with the proprietor, Screaming Eagle has an amazing winemaking team in place, including day to day winemaker Andy Erickson, who is backed up by the globe-trotting Bordelais consultant, Michel Rolland.