10/17/2026
We didn’t dare even hope for this, much less expect it. Tonight, we invited 27 guests to join us for a true blind tasting of six Cabernet Sauvignons. The lineup included acclaimed regional Cabernets and classified-growth Bordeaux, some priced between $100 and $250 per bottle, all carrying scores of 90 points or higher from respected w**e critics.
Among them were two w**es from Lucas & Lewellen.
W**emaker Megan McGrath and co-owner Mike Lewellen joined our guests in the tasting, and they were every bit as blind to the identities of the w**es as everyone else in the room. There was no discussion of producers, vintages, prices, or scores before the votes were cast. Pretty brave to rate your own w**es blindly with a crowd but they’re always up for a challenge.
When the results were tallied, our reserve 2019 “Clone 6” 100% Cabernet Sauvignon finished in first place. Our approachable-in-price 2020 Valley View Cabernet Sauvignon finished second.
We thought both w**es deserved to be in that lineup, along with a few others like Five+One and Cote del Sol. We would never have put them there otherwise. But we also knew what they were up against, and we would have been satisfied to see one place in the top four against such notable entries. But 1st and 2nd place? No way.
For Megan, the result comes during her 20th harvest as w**emaker at Lucas & Lewellen. And for our family w**ery, it means we’re on the right track, making exceptional w**es by hand from the dirt to the glass.
Twenty-seven people tasted the same six w**es without knowing what they cost, what scores they had received, or whose name was on the bottle, and they chose ours.
We’ll be talking about this one for a long time.
