Founded in 1970, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars is a pioneering Napa Valley winery in many ways.
When the Napa Valley region had not yet experienced the expansion it witnessed in recent years, the founders of Stag's Leap Wine Cellars acquired a 17-hectare orchard and replanted it with a majority of Cabernet Sauvignon vines. This grape variety that was not widely used locally and this marked the beginning of an unparalleled revolution in the history of American wines.
This pioneering spirit and the quality of Stag's Leap Wine Cellars' wines were swiftly recognised beyond the country’s borders. Indeed, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars surprised many by winning the best Cabernet Sauvignon blind tasting competition at the famous "Judgment of Paris" in 1976, ahead of many prestigious French wines.
From this date onwards, Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignons experienced an unprecedented expansion. The emergence of numerous wineries and the development of the vineyard's surface area was such that in 1989 the Stag's Leap District was recognised as an American wine area.
Since 2007, Stag's Leap Wine Cellars has been under the joint management of the American winery Ste. Michelle Wine Estates and the Antinori family.
The name Stag's Leap refers to the legend of a deer that escaped from hunters through the iconic peaks of the eponymous district. The wine labels feature an elegant illustration paying tribute to this legend.
