Blackbird Vineyards spotlight
Winemaker Aaron Pott is on camera for Blackbird Vineyards, the Pomerol-inspired Napa house behind this Cabernet-led 2023 Manifest.
The market on this bottle
Wine-Searcher tracks this 2023 Blackbird Vineyards 'Manifest' Cabernet, Napa Valley across the open market. Their published U.S. low is $124.46 and the average is $152.27. Our slash is $125.00.
2023 Blackbird Vineyards 'Manifest' Cabernet, Napa Valley
Aaron Pott's Cabernet-led Manifest, Pomerol-trained Napa contour, a 2023 you can open at one hundred twenty-five dollars.
The 2023 Manifest is 93 percent Cabernet Sauvignon with 4 percent Merlot and 3 percent Cabernet Franc: cassis, graphite, dark chocolate, dried herbs, now $75
Cabernet in the lead, Blackbird's Right Bank manners still in the room
Blackbird built its name on Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Manifest turns the volume toward Cabernet without dropping that contour. Aaron Pott, trained in Bordeaux, keeps the wine polished rather than overbuilt. 2023 was a long, healthy Napa Cabernet year. This is the bottle to open with short ribs while the rest settle.
The house
Founded in 2003 in Oak Knoll, Blackbird makes Bordeaux-inspired Napa reds. Julia and John Hinshaw have steered the house since 2019. Aaron Pott remains the winemaker.
The wine
93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc. Cabernet for the frame, Merlot for the middle, Franc for lift.
The vintage
No Wine-Searcher match for this bottling yet. 2023 Napa Cabernet is widely framed as a long, bright, fine-tannin year.
The drinker
Cassis and graphite first. Decant 45 to 75 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F. Short ribs or rosemary lamb.
Cabernet power with Pomerol manners
Dark fruit first: cassis, blackberry, a cocoa line. Graphite, dried herbs, and a savory Cabernet echo on the finish. Full-bodied, firm but polished tannin, a long confident line.
A wet winter and a long season after harder recent years. Cabernet from 2023 tends to carry ripe fruit with brighter acidity and finer tannin than the heat-hit 2022s.
Cassis, blackberry, dark cherry, cocoa, graphite, dried herb.
Full, Cabernet-driven, polished tannin, Merlot roundness, Franc lift.
Dark chocolate, savory Cabernet, a long close. Decant 45 to 75 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F.
Aaron Pott, Cabernet in the lead, blend for contour
Manifest is Cabernet-led on purpose: 93 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 4 percent Merlot, 3 percent Cabernet Franc. Pott's Blackbird work has always been about Bordeaux shape on Napa fruit. Cabernet sets the architecture. Merlot fills the mid-palate. Franc brings the aromatic lift that keeps the wine walking.
The house sources across Napa rather than locking to a single estate block. That lets Pott pick lots for blend, not slogan.
Serve 60 to 64 F in a Bordeaux glass. Decant three-quarters of an hour. Air is for perfume on a young Cabernet-led red.
From an Oak Knoll Merlot vineyard to a Napa blending house
Blackbird began as a small Merlot-focused vineyard in Oak Knoll. The name still honors that grape even when Cabernet takes the lead.
The original Oak Knoll site was planted after walnuts came out in the mid-1990s. The brand launched in 2003 around Merlot and Cabernet Franc.
Aaron Pott, a UC Davis graduate who ran Troplong Mondot in Saint-Emilion, brought a Right Bank sensibility to Napa fruit. That is still the house language.
Manifest is the Cabernet chapter of that story: structure in front, Blackbird contour still in the blend.
Short ribs in the pot, lamb on the grill
Cabernet-led Napa reds want protein, browned edges, and a sauce with time behind it. Rosemary and slow jus make the graphite note feel inevitable.
Two plates. One red-wine braised short rib. One rosemary-garlic lamb chop.
Stand upright if you can. Decant 45 to 75 minutes. Serve 60 to 64 F.
Red Wine-Braised Short Ribs
The deep braise mirrors cassis, cocoa, and savory Cabernet.
Why it works: Tannin cuts the richness. Dark fruit folds into the jus.
View Recipe for red wine braised short ribs (opens in a new tab)
Rosemary Garlic Lamb Chops
Lamb gives Cabernet savory fat and char. Rosemary pulls the dried-herb edge forward.
Why it works: Graphite and black fruit lock into the crust. Acidity keeps the finish clean.
View Recipe for rosemary garlic lamb chops (opens in a new tab)Put Manifest in the cart
Aaron Pott, Cabernet-led 2023, one hundred twenty-five dollars against a $180 typical retail.
Put six in the cart. Open one with short ribs. Let the rest grow into cedar, graphite, and cocoa.
