Ghost Block vineyard

  • CCOF Organically grown

  • Old vines

  • Non-hedged

  • 114’ Elevation (formerly 2000’)

  • Rare vertical bedding

  • Two epochs of volcanics

  • Persona: Sophia Lauren, meaning: generosity, sprezzatura, and easy to love

Yountville

Ghost Block

The Ghost Block vineyard is a unicorn of sorts, being a ‘mountain’ vineyard on the valley floor. The old vines of Ghost Block sit on the side of Yountville Hill—a mountaintop that formerly resided high above the Stags Leap District in the Vaca Mountains. Some eight million years ago, in a cataclysmic event, a portion of the Vacas toppled, tossing a peak to the west. This relocated peak (Yountville Hill) got turned on its side, revealing a unique, vertical bedding of rarely-ever-exposed Napa Tertiary Volcanics.

Ghost Block Cabernet Sauvignon interprets this soil construct with soft, plush tannins and friendly, bright acidity. She is both generous and poised. Down-valley cool mornings add a touch of sandalwood and rose petal to the varietal traits of cherry and cassis.

  • Pilcrow row tag.

    Small lot Cab.

  • Harvest at Ghost Block

    3 tons of organically grown grapes

  • Ford Tractor in Ghost Block

    Only Fords in Ghost Block

  • The quarry at Ghost Block

    Two epochs of soil - fertile white and iron-rich red

  • Ghost Block bottle

    Ghost Block typeface = Bodoni

2023 Ghost Block

  • 100% Cabernet Sauvignon

  • Yountville AVA

  • Elevation: 114 feet

  • Slope: 3.1%

  • Aspect: South (187.7°)

  • Bedrock depth: 87 inches

  • Organically Farmed (CCOF)

  • Non-hedged

  • Harvest date: 9/29/2023

  • 13.2% Alcohol by Volume

  • 3.73 pH

  • Minimum effective SO2

  • Neither fined nor filtered

  • No Velcorin ®

  • Vegan

  • Zero residual sugar

  • Natural, non-GMO yeast

  • Aged 22 months in French Oak

  • Just 27% new barrique

  • Cooperage: Boutes Grand Reserve

  • 266 cases crafted

  • Typeface: Bodoni by Giambattista Bodoni circa 1818

  • $125 per 750ml

  • 97 points | "tanned leather, tobacco, sage, bay laurel, and spearmint layered over dark berry fruit ... with a joyful density and a more savoury expression infusing blue-black and red fruit tones"

    Decanter | “The aromas are wild and sauvage, with notes of tanned leather, tobacco, sage, bay laurel, and spearmint layered over dark berry fruit. Full-bodied on the palate, the wine carries the same coiled energy and tension found in Pilcrow’s Coombsville and Mt Veeder bottlings, yet with a joyful density and a more savoury expression infusing blue-black and red fruit tones with rose petal nuance. The tannins are wonderfully supple and ripe, underscoring the balanced freshness and fabulous vibrancy of the vintage. There is a compact, almost Bruce Lee-like power to the berries grown on the red volcanic soils, married to the generosity of fruit from blocks rooted in tufa, which produce slightly larger berries and lend a juicier profile. Drink 2026-2050 Alc 13.2%” Pilcrow, Ghost Block, Yountville 2023

  • 94 points | "Crushed stone accents cassis and black cherries ... Silky-textured and reasonably expansive on the palate"

    Robert Parker Wine Advocate | “This Yountville site has yielded a slightly more generous wine than Pilcrow's other 2023 offerings, weighing in at 13.2% alcohol. Crushed stone accents cassis and black cherries in this medium-bodied wine. Silky-textured and reasonably expansive on the palate, with a lingering finish, the 2023 Cabernet Sauvignon Ghost Block is the most approachable of the vintage's four Pilcrow Cabernets.” May 07, 2026

  • 91 points | "oodles of cassis and black cherries ... it's ripe and velvety, with a softly tannic finish"

    Robert Parker Wine Advocate | “Atypically ripe and plummy, Pilcrow's 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Ghost Block also comes with a slightly smoky, bacony note and oodles of cassis and black cherries. Medium- to full-bodied, it's ripe and velvety, with a softly tannic finish. It's a bit of an outlier in terms of Pilcrow's preferred style, but it drinks very well.” May 07, 2026

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