The 7 Best Wines From Napa Valley’s St. Helena AVA to Buy in 2026
Honig, Ehlers Estate, Paul Hobbs
The St. Helena AVA is named for the town and mountain within its boundaries, and it is situated in the northern part of Napa Valley just below Calistoga. Archeological evidence shows that the land may have been inhabited by the native Wappo people as early as 2000 BC. The town of St. Helena was established in the 1850s but not officially incorporated until 1876. Soon thereafter, the Napa Railroad laid tracks northward to include the town on its route. Resident Charles Krug is credited with making the first Napa Valley wine here in 1858, and within a decade, many other entrepreneurs followed suit.
Positioned in the narrowest part of the valley, St. Helena’s vineyards are mainly on the valley floor with elevations between 400 and 800 feet above sea level. On the west side of the appellation, soils are mainly gravel and loam, while towards the east, they tend to be volcanic in nature. Its position in the north of the valley doesn’t allow the cooling influences of the Pacific Ocean and San Pablo Bay to reach it, making for fairly warm temperatures and decreased variation in day-to-night temperatures when compared to the rest of the valley. This lack of cooling produces a riper style of Cabernet Sauvignon and other Bordeaux varieties such as Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Merlot that are prized by many.
-
Revana 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon
Image Credit: Revana Dr. Madaiah Revana was born in a small village in southern India and grew up on a farm where his family grew vegetables and rice. His early interest in agriculture led him to open three wineries, including this one in St. Helena. His winemaker is Thomas Rivers Brown, who works with vineyard manager Jim Barbour, and together they chose the sites and the grapes to make this fantastic wine. It has aromas of pencil lead, black raspberry, and ripe cherry with plush tannins and flavors of cassis, cigar box, and a touch of vanilla in the finish.
-
J. Lohr Vineyards and Wines 2022 Carol’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon
Image Credit: J. Lohr Jerry Lohr founded J. Lohr Vineyards and Wines by planting vines in Monterey in 1972. Today, his children, Cynthia, Steve, and Lawrence, manage more than 4,000 acres of estate-owned vineyards across the state. This delicious Cabernet Sauvignon is made from grapes sourced from Carol’s Vineyard in St. Helena. It is comprised of 96 percent Cab and 4 percent Petit Verdot and has aromas of brown baking spices, cherry, and espresso with flavors of ripe blackberry, red plum, and a touch of cocoa in the finish.
-
Joseph Phelps 2024 Sauvignon Blanc
Image Credit: Joseph Phelps With all of our coverage of big, bold reds from Napa, we decided to include a well-made white wine that’s grown and produced in St. Helena, and we both immediately thought of Joseph Phelps Sauvignon Blanc. It’s 100 percent Sauvignon Blanc, and the winemaker chose to incorporate some Musqué clone for freshness and balanced acidity. It has aromas of grapefruit, eucalyptus, and freshly ground white pepper with flavors of lemon zest, honeysuckle, and creamy lemon curd.
-
Paul Hobbs 2021 Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon
Image Credit: Paul Hobbs Winemaker Paul Hobbs crafts this stunning Cab using grapes grown in the Dr. Crane Vineyard in St. Helena. Paul was one of 11 children and grew up on an orchard in New York state. He attended Notre Dame, but his love of viticulture was responsible for his graduation from UC Davis with a master’s degree in viticulture and enology. Paul currently makes wine around the world, but we always gravitate back to some of his finest wines from Napa Valley. This stunning wine is drinking beautifully right now. It has aromas of fennel frond, black licorice, purple flowers, and black raspberry that transition to full-on black fruit flavors and brown baking spices on the palate, accented by silky smooth tannins. Drink now or hold for another 10 years.
-
Corison 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon
Image Credit: Corison We continue to be fans of Cathy Corison’s wines and have been for decades because she strives to make elegant, restrained, and relatively low alcohol wines even in the face of higher valley temperatures and the challenges of climate change. We tasted her 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon upon release, but discovered another bottle in our work cellar and found it to be drinking perfectly right now, five years after harvest. It has aromas of cassis, anise, cigar box, and rolled tobacco leaf, and fine, soft tannins that support flavors of cherry, plum, blackberry, crushed violet petals, and dried Mediterranean herbs.
-
Honig 2021 Bartolucci Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon
Image Credit: Honig The Honig family moved to Rutherford in 1964 and made their first vintage of Sauvignon Blanc in 1980. Today, the estate is managed by Michael Honig, who took the helm at 22 years old, and three decades later, he is still going strong. His winemaking team consists of three talented women, including Kristen Belair, Ashley Egelhoff, and Gabi Smith. Their Bartolucci Vineyard 2021 has enticing aromas of cocoa powder, black raspberry, and red cherry that transition to flavors of blackberry, cassis, and pencil lead, all wrapped in a velvety tannic sheath.
-
Ehlers Estate 2021 Cabernet Franc
Image Credit: Ehlers Estate The original Ehlers winery was founded in 1886 by German immigrant Bernard Ehlers. He purchased the property from the previous owners after all of their vines died from phylloxera. Alfred Domingos purchased the winery from Ehler’s widow in 1923 and ran it until 1959. Today, it is owned by the Leducq Foundation Charitable Trust, and wines are made by head winemaker Adam Casto, who worked for 11 years under Philippe Melka. His 2021 Cabernet Franc is simply delicious and has aromas of rose petals, brown baking spice, and a touch of geranium leaf in the complex bouquet. Silky tannins form a sturdy backbone that supports flavors of black raspberry, jalapeño, and black cherry.
