Hosted by Bob Cunningham
Date: Thursday, April 24, 2025
Time: 6:00 PM
Venue: MM Kitchen Studio
179 W Broadway, New York, NY 10013

Price: $1,995 + Tax

Few names are as synonymous with the history of California Cabernet Sauvignon as Inglenook, Louis Martini, and Diamond Creek. These estates played a pivotal role in shaping Napa Valley’s reputation, producing wines that remain benchmarks of power, elegance, and longevity.

Inglenook is a legendary Napa Valley estate, instrumental in elevating California wine to world-class status. Originally planted with Cinsault, the vineyard in Rutherford was purchased in 1879 by Gustave Niebaum, a Finnish sea captain who replanted it with the finest varieties from France and Germany. Niebaum was a pioneer—he was the first in California to bottle wine under his own label. After his passing in 1908, his grandnephew John Daniel Jr. took the reins, producing what are now considered Inglenook’s most legendary wines. The estate changed hands in 1964 when it was sold to Allied Grape Growers, but its legacy was revived in 1978 when Francis Ford Coppola purchased the property and, in 2011, Coppola reclaimed the historic Inglenook name.

The Martini family emigrated from Italy to San Francisco in the 1880s, and by 1911, Louis Martini had returned from studying winemaking in Genoa, Italy, with a vision for making wine in California. He founded his iconic winery in 1922, first in the San Joaquin Valley before moving to Napa Valley, where he acquired exceptional vineyard sites. During the 1940s, 50s, and 60s, Louis Martini set the standard for Napa Cabernet Sauvignon and his wines were among the most celebrated of their time.

Founded by Al Brounstein, Diamond Creek was a revolution in Napa Valley winemaking. Brounstein was one of the first to recognize the distinct qualities of different terroirs within Diamond Mountain, setting out to produce Cabernet Sauvignons that would showcase each vineyard’s unique expression. These wines are unmistakably Diamond Mountain in character, with power, structure, and deep complexity, yet each vineyard offers its own nuances of fruit, minerality, and texture. Under Brounstein’s stewardship in the 1970s, Diamond Creek produced some of its finest wines, cementing its status as one of Napa’s greats.

This tasting is a rare opportunity to explore the heritage and evolution of California Cabernet Sauvignon, featuring three of its most legendary estates.