2021 Charles Krug Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Today it's been very hot and humid, and although this morning I spent a few hours helping friends clear out a house, the rest of the day has been spend huddling in the air conditioning!  At least inside, I can open up a nice bottle of wine to enjoy. Tonight, I've opened a bottle from a favorite Napa Valley producer, the 2021 Charles Krug Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.   Let's see how this wine is tasting!

The wine is an inky black at the center with bright ruby along the edges, just as you'd expect from a big Napa Cabernet.  The nose presents aromas of leather, ripe cherry and green herbs with some mineral undertones.  The first sip is a delight, a rush of ripe black fruit, blackberry, cherry and currant that wash over your palate before retreating and allowing the earthy mineral and warm spice notes present themselves midpalate.  The tannins are firm but yielding, ideal for the long, smooth dry finish that lingers until your next sip.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as it's just a delightful Napa Valley Cabernet that tends to be much more affordable than the bigger names out there.  This wine would pair well with a variety of bold dishes, but as always it would be best with a nice big steak.  Well, we're in luck as tonight I am enjoying this wine with a nice big T-bone grilled rare along with some grilled hatch chilis, the first of the season that I picked up at my local market this morning!  Cheers!

2013 Charles Krug Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Well it was a chilly Monday, but somehow I managed to go to the gym and come back and grill under the eve of the garage, so all things considered, it wasn't a bad start to the work week!  Tonight I've opened a bottle of wine that's been in my cellar for a few years, but I finally got around to opening it, a wine from one of my favorite Napa Valley producers, which I've visited a few times, the 2013 Charles Krug Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.  So let's see how this wine has matured!

The wine is a deep, inky black at the center, with bright garnet along the edges, just as you might expect from a nice Napa Cabernet.  The nose is chock full of leather, cassis and blackberry, beckoning you to take a sip.  The taste is a rush of cool, black fruit, blackberry, cherry and plum that transitions nicely to some notes of mint and white pepper spice midpalate.  The tannins are still a bit sharp, providing some nice backbone for the long, smooth and very dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as it's just a lovely example of a pleasant and approachable Napa Cabernet that is a decent value (current vintages are running about $25).  This wine would pair very well with a variety of hearty winter dishes, from stew to chili to braised short ribs, but tonight I am enjoying this wine with a petit prime heart of ribeye, grilled rare and topped with bleu cheese, along with some bacon roasted purple Brussels sprouts and a big baked potato with sour cream and scallions.  Cheers!

2015 Charles Krug Napa Valley Merlot

I have been a fan of Charles Krug since my first visit to Napa Valley on the wine train a few years ago.  They were one of the wineries we visited and I was impressed with their facility, tasting room and history, but was most impressed by the quality and value represented by their wines. You can routinely find their Napa Valley Merlot for less than $20, I bought this bottle at Costco for $17 and thought it was a no brainer for a fan of the winery and varietal like me.  So let's see how it tastes!

The wine is a classic inky black at the center with bright ruby along the edges.  The nose presents earthy aromas of leather, smoke and a hint of mint that suggest subdued elegance.  The taste is a rush of cherry cola, blackberry and blueberry that transitions to some notes of pipe tobacco and dark chocolate midpalate.  The tannins are well structured and integrated, creating a wonderful backdrop for the long, voluptuous finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as it's just a solid, food friendly Merlot at a terrific price that will have you choosing this as an everyday wine.  This wine would pair well with a variety of casual dinners, from burgers and steaks to pizza and barbecue, but tonight I've gone a bit high end.  I am enjoying this wine with a rare grilled prime filet mignon, grilled asparagus and a big old baked potato with sour cream and scallions.  Cheers!

2014 Charles Krug Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

What a chilly day here today, thankfully I have some good food and wine to warm me up a bit!  Tonight I've decided to open a bottle of wine from one of my favorite producers in Napa Valley, Charles Krug.  I first discovered their wine back in 2012, when I tasted the 2009 Yountville Cabernet (you can see that review here) and then really got into their wines when I visited the winery in Napa back in 2015 and 2016 (see 2015 here and 2016 here).  So let's see what the 2014 vintage has to offer!

The wine has the classic Napa Cabernet coloration, deep and inky at the center, bright along the edges.  The aromas are somewhat different, with some earthy notes of leather, peat and minerals, along with some blackberry and plum notes.  The taste is all classic big Napa Cabernet, with a rush of black fruit up front, that transitions nicely to some green herb, black pepper spice and mineral notes midpalate.  The tannins are nicely structured and well integrated, leaving you with a long, velvety and very dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, it's a really wonderful Cabernet ideal for fans of the Big Napa varieties, but it remains one of the best values out of Napa in my opinion.  I bought this at my local Meijer store for just $23!  This wine would pair very well with a nice steak, which is handy since tonight I'm enjoying this wine with a rare grilled Cajun spiced Angus porterhouse, a big baked potato and some green bean casserole (I didn't get enough at holiday dinners!).  Cheers!

2013 Charles Krug Generations

Happy National Drink Wine Day!  Of course I usually think that every day is National Drink Wine Day,  but I suppose I'm biased.  In any case, I've decided to celebrate the official day with a wonderful Bordeaux style blend that I picked up on my visit to Napa last year, the 2013 Charles Krug Generations.  This wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (88%), Malbec (6%), Merlot (4%) and Petit Verdot (2%), so legitimately it could still be labeled as a Cabernet.  I tried a bottle of this when I was in Napa in 2015 (see here: 2012 Charles Krug Generations), so let's see how this vintage tastes!

The wine is a deep, inky black at the center, with bright ruby along the edges, classic for a Napa Cabernet.  The nose is a lovely combination of graphite, leather, black cherry and a hint of blueberry.  The taste is a lovely rush of black fruit, cherry cola and mocha that transition to some mineral notes midpalate.  The finish is wonderful, with firm, youthful tannins providing for a long, smooth and exceptionally dry finish.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, it's drinking very nicely now, but is sure to develop with a bit of time in the cellar (lucky I bought an extra bottle!).  This wine would be perfect for a hearty meal, from pot roast to Italian pasta dishes, but since it feels like spring today, I've decided to grill out!  I'm enjoying this wine with a nice Thai chili rubbed New York strip with grilled asparagus and a big baked potato with all the trimmings.  Cheers!

Napa Valley Wine Train Quattro Vino Tour!

Merry Christmas!  And for a special Christmas post, I've decided to share a wonderful wine experience I had a couple weeks ago.  Now, of course I like wine, but I also like trains, so combining them together is the best of both world.  Now last year I took my first trip on the Napa Valley Wine Train (see this post) on the "Ambassador Wine Tour" and since I was headed to San Francisco on business it seemed like a good idea to revisit the train (it's a perfect day trip from San Francisco as they arrange transportation to and from the Ferry Terminal).  When I called to make my reservation, I spoke to a wonderful lady who informed me of a new service, the "Quattro Vino" tour, where you go on a private car to visit four different wineries, with a small bites menu between each stop.  So here you are, live vicariously through my photos!

To start, this is a completely separate train than the traditional Napa Valley Wine Train, which goes from downtown Napa to Saint Helena.  Although this train follows much the same route, it is a separate private car, a restored early 20th Century heavyweight car, pulled by a GP-9 diesel locomotive.

The car is beautifully restored on the inside and there is a kitchen and chef to prepare the wonderful small bite menu (more on that in a little bit!).  The train then goes to four different wineries, hence "quattro vino."

The train departed right around 10:00 am.  On the way to our first stop, we were treated to a glass of sparkling wine and then the "breakfast" menu which consisted of a Greek yogurt and berry parfait with granola, brulee steel cut oatmeal and ciabatta topped with shaved pork, arugula pesto, carmelized onions, egg and manchego cheese.  Everything was delicious!

Soon we arrived at our first stop, the Robert Mondavi winery:

Within the tour, we saw some of the vineyard as well as Beniamino Bufano's "The Muse" which is arguably one of the most photographed sculptures in the valley.

Then we were treated to a tasting of a white and red wine in the grand cellar, so many barrels!  We had the chance to taste some of the 2012 Vintage of the Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon that I reviewed a few weeks earlier.

Soon it was time to leave and head for our "lunch" course of small bites on the way to our next winery stop.  The lunch menu consisted of asparagus veloute with white truffle oil and a bibb lettuce salad with bleu cheese, fennel and apple crisp.  Again everything was delicious!

Then we found ourselves at Robert's brother Peter's winery, Charles Krug, the oldest operating winery in Napa Valley, founded in 1861.

We started with a taste of their Sauvignon Blanc, which I really liked, despite it not being a red wine!

We had some additional tastes of some very fine red wines in the upstairs tasting room this time.

Then we were back on the train for more bites and the next winery on the tour.

We enjoyed our main course, a choice of duck sausage with potato puree, grilled onions and sauternes apples, or what I chose, the seared halibut with fava, lentil and white bean ragout with saffron.

The next stop was Maryvale Winery, which was beautifully decorated for Christmas (this was the added bonus I didn't have last year as I went in October).

The wines were very nice, particularly their cabernet, but alas they, like every other winery so far, would not ship to Indiana, so I was out of luck getting any of these wines home!

Back on the train, for a quick ride over to our fourth and final winery stop, V. Sattui, which was also nicely decked out for Christmas.

We had a wonderful tasting with a young man who had a lot of knowledge.  They had some specialties in GSM blends, and they had one that I really liked (more on that in a future post as they would ship to Indiana!).

The tasting room was also very nice as they put us in a private room that really was nice.  Then it was back on the train to Napa, but not before we had dessert!

The dessert bites were wonderful, a cinnamon crusted tarte au citron, a flourless chocolate cake and apple almond cannoli!  And that was it, a wonderful afternoon spent in Napa with some great wine and food!  Here's wishing all of you a Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year!