Merryvale has been part of Napa Valley’s modern wine story since the early days, making its home in a historic St. Helena winery in 1983. More than four decades later, its Napa Valley Cab remains one of the clearest expressions of what the house does best: bringing fruit from across the valley together into a polished, classically structured Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2022 shows why that approach works so well. St. Helena provides a substantial portion of the fruit, vineyards farther south bring freshness and balance, and a small amount of Mt. Veeder adds mountain heft. Together, they capture the generosity of the vintage without letting richness take over.  That balance has kept Merryvale relevant through decades of changing Napa styles. There’s plenty of fruit and depth here, but also the restraint and definition that make Cabernet worth coming back to. It’s classic Napa from a producer with the experience to know when enough is enough. At $38, this is the kind of reliable Napa Cabernet value that’s getting increasingly hard to find.