Favia La Magdalena 2015

Favia was born in 2003 as a collaboration between viticulturalist Annie Favia and winemaker Andy Erickson. The husband-and-wife team had held myriad responsibilities at some of Napa Valley’s most lauded wineries and vineyards before embarking on this still-unfolding narrative, with a simple mission: create soulful wines that express the true nature of the vineyards from which they come.

Favia soon took root in Coombsville, Napa’s youngest AVA, with a family home and winery on a historic property, where the Favia-Ericksons restored the local ecology with native plants and took a holistic and historically sensitive approach to the planting of fruit orchards and a small, dry-farmed vineyard. Together with winemaker Jessica Tarpy, they collaborated on identifying other unique vineyard sites from the Vaca Mountains with soils, climate, and aspects ideal for growing exquisite wine grapes, developing strong relationships with select winegrowers to perfect their viticultural practices. In the winery, the team carefully coaxes grapes into wine with gentle handling and minimal intervention to allow the fruit to speak for itself—producing unparalleled wines, each with its own distinct character.

In early 2023, Favia became stewards of a beautiful 86-acre parcel in the heart of Oakville—one of the last undeveloped great estates in the Napa Valley. The new Favia property offers an opportunity to create something entirely new in the valley, while embodying their long-considered ethos: to be connected with the natural world, respect the ancient methods and places that they now steward, all while sharing the bounty that will come from this land with a wider community. 

"Just about pure perfection in a class, the 2015 La Magdalena is primarily Cabernet Sauvignon with 28% Cabernet Franc, all of which spent 22 months in a mix of new and used French oak. Thrilling notes of bloody blueberries, forest floor, crushed violets, and hints of iron all flow to an inky colored, powerful, full-bodied, yet truly seamless Cabernet Sauvignon that does everything right. Complex, layered, powerful, and elegant, readers should beg, borrow, or steal to get ahold of this beauty." - 90 Points, Jeb Dunnuck

"Extremely perfumed with currants, blackberries and oyster shell. Full-bodied and very chewy with lots of intensity and richness." - 94 Points, James Suckling

"Favia’s 2015 La Magdalena is a blend of equal parts Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon, all from Oakville Ranch. A rush of black cherry, plum, chocolate, spice, licorice and cloves infuse this dark, sumptuous Napa Valley red. There is a real unctuousness to the fruit, with distinct contributions from the Franc in both the wine’s aromatic intensity and structural profile." - 95 Points, Antonio Galloni

Producer: Favia

Country: USA

Region: California

Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc 

Appellation: Napa Valley

Vintage: 2015

Size: 750ml