Louis M. Martini The Gryphon Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2023 is made from Cabernet Sauvignon.

The Gryphon takes its name and its crest from the mythical creature that is the traditional symbol of Genoa, the Italian port city where Louis M. Martini was born and from which he set sail for America in 1899 at just twelve years old. The three sections of the gryphon's tail stand for the three generations of Martinis — Louis M., Louis P. and Mike — who built the family's legacy across more than ninety years in Napa Valley.

Six years in the making, The Gryphon is a deliberate return to the classic Napa Cabernet of the 1960s and 1970s: varietal, energetic and alive. Fruit is drawn from premier vineyards across the valley — among them William Hill, Monte Rosso and Stagecoach — and the wine is crafted in the same small-lot cellar used for the winery's flagship Lot No. 1. A blend led by 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, rounded out with Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Malbec, it is layered, structured and built for the table. Boysenberry and blackberry open the glass, lifted by dried mint, fennel and a whisper of jasmine, over a core of cool mineral and cocoa from fresh French oak.

Review:
"This is super-classic Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon: inky black-fruited yet bright, layered with sagebrush, tobacco, violets and loamy earth."
Decanter, 97 points