2016 Mount Veeder Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

It's Thursday and the week is starting to feel like it's winding down!  Tonight, I've decided to open a bottle of wine I received as a gift from a fellow cast member in the Elkhart Civic Theatre production of the Music Man last month, the 2016 Mount Veeder Winery Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.  My friend did a wonderful job selecting this wine as I've been a fan of Mount Veeder Cabernet since the 2008 Vintage (you can see that review here).  So let's see what this wine has to offer!

The wine is a deep, inky black at the center with bright ruby along the edges, just as you'd expect from a nice Napa Cabernet.  The nose is a luxurious basket of leather, blackberry and plum with just a hint of smoke.  The taste is classic big Napa Cabernet, with a rush of black fruit and cherry cola that transitions nicely to some notes of white pepper spice and anise midpalate.  The tannins are robust in their youth, providing for an exceptionally smooth and dry finish that seems to last a minute or more.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as it's a wonderfully fresh example of the varietal, but would likely benefit from a few years in the cellar.  This wine is screaming to be paired with a big juicy steak, and thankfully I can oblige.  Tonight I'm enjoying this wine with a rare grilled prime New York Strip, grilled asparagus and some smashed purple potatoes with parsley and white truffle butter.  Cheers!