Corison
Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley
2019

The producer

It is rare to find a Napa Valley producer so consistently committed to restraint, balance, and site expression, but Corison has been a benchmark for classical Cabernet Sauvignon since Cathy Corison founded the estate in 1987. Long admired for going against the prevailing trends of ripeness and extraction, Corison has built its reputation on producing Cabernet Sauvignons of longevity, elegance, and transparency, firmly rooted in vineyard character rather than winemaking excess.

The domaine’s production is focused on a small number of meticulously farmed vineyards, including the historic Kronos Vineyard in St. Helena, with mature vines planted on well-drained gravelly and alluvial soils. Wines are made with minimal intervention, moderate alcohol levels, and extended ageing to allow structure and nuance to emerge naturally. The result is a portfolio that showcases Napa Cabernet at its most refined and age-worthy, offering a compelling counterpoint to more opulent styles and representing some of the most authentic value at the top end of the valley.

The wine

Fruit for Corison Cabernet Sauvignon is sourced from carefully selected vineyards in the Napa Valley, with a strong emphasis on mature sites in St. Helena, including the renowned Kronos Vineyard. These vineyards are planted on well-drained gravelly and alluvial soils that naturally limit vigour and promote even ripening, while Napa’s warm days and cool nights help preserve freshness and structure. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks, followed by extended ageing in French oak barrels, used judiciously to support rather than dominate the wine, before further bottle ageing.

The resulting wine is defined by precision and balance rather than sheer power, combining pure cassis and dark berry fruit with subtle floral, herbal, and mineral nuances. Fine-grained tannins and vibrant acidity give a firm yet refined structure, producing a medium- to full-bodied Cabernet Sauvignon of clarity, poise, and impressive longevity.

We choose our wines based on a range of criteria (see how we choose our wines) of which critic scores is just one. Rather than simply highlight the best score to promote a wine, our average critic score is calculated from the scores provided by several respected wine critics, who we follow for specific regions. They do not represent all critic scores and, wherever possible, we try and give more weight to more recent reviews. Where appropriate we consider market-based scores like Global Wine Score or Wine Searcher Average scores.

As a rule, we look to offer wines that achieve a 92/100 average critic score or better and frankly a lot of very good wines simply don’t make the cut. As a high-end provider we want to reflect that positioning in the quality of wines we offer. Such wines are only a tiny fraction of those generally on offer in the market. We believe that an average score is a more conservative and representative approach, but it is still subjective and only offered as a guide to our customers, who will (and should) do their own research. We will add individual critic scores to our website in the future.