Adversity Cellars The Papas Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2019

Adversity Cellars is the newest brand to launch from the creative mind of renowned winemaker Russell Bevan. Along with his wife Heidi, Russell started this new label of love specifically to highlight vineyard sites that yield unique flavor and textural profiles. The name derives from the fact that these mountaintop locales force the vines to struggle for their very existence, causing them to deal with great adversity.

Russell’s journey to getting such high praise from one of the world’s most highly regarded wine critics is an anomalous one. Born in Ukiah, CA, he earned his master’s degree in Philosophy from Gonzaga University, worked in Minneapolis selling dental equipment, wrote a syndicated wine column which was published in the Wine Spectator, and then, after moving back to California, became a self-taught winemaker with his first vintage in 2005. Since then, Russell has crafted over fifteen 100-point wines in his career, including Napa Valley’s only 100-point wine in 2011 (and one of only eight in the world for that vintage) awarded by Robert Parker. 

Heidi spent the last eight years flying airplanes and operating an aviation company, enjoying the high-flying day-to-day challenges. Since meeting Russell and getting married, Heidi has earned her wings in the wine world by helping with tastings and events. And at harvest, she can be found working at the winery, crafting the wines side-by-side with her husband. 

The Papas is a cuvée from several mountaintop vineyards and is an homage to hardworking fathers. This utterly monumental wine displays distinctive power, but with just enough restraint. As it slowly unwinds in the glass, it begins to seduce you with its incredibly perfumed aromatics of ripe boysenberries, blackberries, and dark cherries. These aromas are laced with exotic spices, iron, fresh violets, licorice, and even hints of dark chocolate that all emerge from the glass. On the palate, this wine possesses a gorgeous full-bodied texture- layered and structured with beautiful round, polished tannins that lead to the long, voluptuous finish. This is a simply mesmerizing wine that continues to evolve each second in the glass. While it is nearly impossible to resist today, it will surely have a long, graceful evolution ahead. It was aged in 100% new French oak barrels for 18 months, and just 4 barrels were produced.