California’s Hottest Cult Cabernet Isn’t From Napa

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When we try to identify the next wine that will achieve cult status, we first look to fruit sourcing and winemaking talent. We rarely consider the overarching wine region, as the very idea of a cult wine practically screams “Napa!” However, in evaluating some incredible high-profile projects that have come our way this season, we think the next big Cabernet Sauvignon that collectors—especially younger ones—will clamor for is Prophet & Poet. It’s a Sonoma County wine with a powerhouse team behind it: winemaker Jesse Katz, vineyard owners Christopher and Ariel Jackson of Jackson Family Wines, actress-producer-entrepreneur Jessica Biel, and Biel’s brother and sister-in-law, Justin and Rose Biel.

Although most wine lovers think Pinot Noir when they hear about red wine from Sonoma, the northern Alexander Valley and Knights Valley AVAs are home to some of the finest sites for Bordeaux varieties on the continent. And while we often shy away from “celebrity” wine brands, the authentic friendship between Katz and the Biels goes back to childhood. More than that, the exciting combination of Katz’s winemaking talent and the Jacksons’ access to family-owned vineyards for grapes that usually go into the likes of Anakota, Peter Michael, Marcassin, and Vérité is the hallmark of a surefire success.

The venture began in 2019, on the beaches of Mexico. Jessica and her husband, Justin Timberlake, gave Justin and Rose a one-of-a-kind wine made by family friend and acclaimed winemaker Katz as a wedding present. Jessica and Timberlake named the wine for the newlyweds, with Rose considered the prophet and Justin the poet.

The project came together when Katz mentioned to Christopher Jackson that the Biels were hoping to build upon the wine originally created for their wedding and asked if he could help source fruit from his family’s iconic vineyard sites. The entire process is now a collaborative effort, with Jackson and Katz constantly consulting with each other on vineyard practices. But with Jackson’s viticulture background and Katz’s winemaking expertise, they approach the final product from different angles. Jackson explains that while he seeks high tones, bright acidity, and lifted aromatics in his wine, Katz has an eye on structure, texture, and overall balance.

The inaugural 2021 vintage features five small-lot wines: Black Crown Cabernet Sauvignon, Mountain Sage Proprietary Red, Mourning Cloak Proprietary Red, Ghost Cat Chardonnay, and King Bird Chardonnay. While all five wines are across-the-board knockouts, our favorite is the Black Crown. It’s sourced from three extraordinary, high-elevation Cabernet Sauvignon vineyards: Christopher’s Vineyard, which sits at 2,400 feet of elevation on Pocket Peak (a sub-region of Alexander Valley currently under consideration to be its first nested sub-AVA); Monolith, also on Pocket Peak, which is 1,600 feet above sea level on an old gravel pit; and Anakota Helena Montana Block 941, a white volcanic chalk site at 1,000 feet on Mount St. Helena in Knights Valley. “Block 941 is the most austere of the sites,” Jackson says. “It is tightly wound with a dense obsidian core at the heart of it. The flavors are bright and red fruited, with strawberry, cherry, and cocoa nibs comprising the heart of the wine. Structurally, there is a vein of chalky, fine-grained tannin within.” He believes that Cabernet from this site blended with the holistic power of Monolith and the lifted florality and spice of Christopher’s Vineyard will create a wine that will age for decades. 

Alexander and Knights valleys’ warm, dry summer in 2021 produced incredible concentration and remarkable acidity in grapes, especially Cabernet Sauvignon. “2021 was one of those rare vintages where there was a perfect, gradual ripening curve. Each of the three areas we worked with underwent significant flavor development within the skins of the berries before sugar accumulation,” Jackson says. “The result of the vintage are wines that have powerful tannins, brilliant fruit, ripe herbal qualities, and heaps of acidity.”

When it came to making their Cabernet, Jackson and Katz’s respective visions aligned beautifully. “With Black Crown, we knew what we wanted to do right off the bat,” Jackson says. “We both wanted to create a savory, powerful mountain grown Cabernet Sauvignon that smelled and tasted like home. We wanted it to be unapologetically Sonoma.” Together, they chose the extreme sites with depleted soils that could offer tremendous structure and concentration to their wine, opting in to the savory forest floor and herbal notes that reflect the native fauna around Sonoma’s mountain ranges. Made at Katz’s Aperture cellars, Poet & Prophet benefits from a state-of-the-art facility that embraces a blend of traditional winemaking techniques with cutting-edge technology.

When Katz designed the winery in 2019, he incorporated a new technology that allows him to sort, extract, and ferment in different ways, including an optical sorter and automated pumpover system with temperature control and air injection. Having worked in Napa, Argentina, Bordeaux, and Sonoma, Katz likes to “give a wide and worldly touch” to how he looks at any vineyard, letting that drive the winemaking style. For Black Crown, he split the block in half and fermented it in different ways, then blended it back together to bring out different textures and make a more complex wine. “The hillside Cabernet Sauvignon for Black Crown was all hand-sorted, fermented in small lots, and aged in a combination of new and once-used French oak for around 18 months,” Katz says. “Each step was about preserving purity while building structure and complexity.”

Small amounts of Merlot and Petit Verdot were added for balance and depth. “The Merlot softens the edges, lending suppleness and lush fruit, while the Petit Verdot brings color, structure, and a quiet intensity that deepens the experience without overpowering the Cabernet core,” Katz explains. When fermentation is complete, wines are aged for one year in New French oak, “unfiltered, unacidified, unfined, and not manipulated.” Then Katz, Jackson, and Aperture director of winemaking Hillary Sjolund taste and refine the blend over a period of several months. “It’s a conversation between our palates, between the barrels, and between intuition and passion, down to the one percent an element,” Katz says. “We don’t look at numbers and blend to create a feeling and sense of place and time. This is a living piece of art that will gracefully age for decades and continue to evolve and change.”

Prophet & Poet 2021 Black Crown Cabernet Sauvignon has aromas of black plum, red cherry, star anise, and lavender. Gorgeous plush tannins and an inspiring vein of acidity support raspberry, black cherry, vanilla, bay leaf, and lavender flavors that tease the side palate and linger into a satisfying finish. “This started as a personal gift, something special for a family celebration. But maybe Rose saw it coming,” Jessica Biel tells Robb Report. “At the wedding, she told my brother, ‘One day, we’re going to share this wine with the world. It’s just too beautiful.’” Now, as a partner in a wine brand who gets to see the craft up close, Biel says she is surprised by the quiet precision and emotional depth that goes into every bottle. “The more I learn—about terroir, timing, blending—the more I see it’s a form of artistry,” she says. “Every decision, from pick day to barrel choice, shapes the final expression. Watching Jesse and Chris’s teamwork, I’ve been in awe of the mastery, intuition, and deep craft behind every bottle.” Having tasted through the inaugural vintage of this incredible wine, we are in awe as well.

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