2012 Anana Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Happy Cellar Saturday!  It's that wonderful time, the first Saturday of the month where I raid the cellar for something at least a decade in the making.  Tonight, I've opened a bottle of a recent purchase from Wines Till Sold Out (so it hasn't been in my cellar long) but one that's been aging for a while and it's from a stellar Napa vintage.  The 2012 Anana Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is a 100% Cabernet from the Coombsville and Oakville AVAs of Napa Valley, so let's see how this wine has developed.

The wine is a rich, inky color, as you'd expect from a big Napa Cabernet.  Take a whiff, and you are treated to an explosion of jamminess with lots of ripe fruit over earthy undertones, like eating a blackberry cobbler at a remote forest campsite.  Take a sip and you quickly learn this wine isn't nearly as rustic as you thought, with bright fruit giving way to some tar and smoke that will have you thinking of Bordeaux.  This finish is exceptionally dry, again a nod to the best of the old world Bordeaux style.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 9, as it's drinking beautifully now, but will likely reach it's peak within the next few years.  This wine would pair well with steaks, lamb or even hearty salmon dishes.  Tonight I am enjoying this wine with something a bit more wild, a bison chuckeye steak grilled mid-rare with some steamed asparagus and hollandaise.  Cheers!

2021 Les Vignerons d'Aix en Provence L'Exception Méditerranée Rosé

Happy Sunday!  It's been a day of best laid plans, as I had originally planned to trim all my hedges, but as I started my hedge trimmer, the blades would not engage, and since I'm reticent to trouble shoot in situations where I might lose a finger, I decided to merely trim larger branches and dig up some pesty trees.  And now I am ready for wine and dinner on the patio.  Since we are in the the heart of rosé season, I thought it best to open something from Provence, which I recently purchased from Wines Till Sold Out, the 2021 Les Vignerons d'Aix en Provence L'Exception Méditerranée Rosé.  This wine is a blend of Grenache and Caladoc (a cross of Grenache and Malbec), so let's see what this wine has to offer!

The wine is a pale peach color in the glass, in line with the current trend in rosé.  A gentle swirl of the glass reveals a cascade of peach, melon and pineapple that just dares you to sip by the pool, a true summer day in the glass.  Take a sip and all the flavors of summer come to greet you, peach, melon, citrus and fresh cut grass with plenty of bright acidity and bits of honey and sunshine.  The finish is crisp and dry, perfect for sipping on the patio with friend.

Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8.5, as it's just a wonderfully classis rosé  ideal for the summer season.  Enjoy this wine with summer caprese salad, shrimp cocktail or gazpacho for a wonderful afternoon.  Tonight, I am enjoying this wine with some crispy skin Scottish pearl salmon with some dill cream, along with some risotto and asparagus with hollandaise.  Cheers!

2017 Seven Hills Summit View Cabernet Sauvignon

Happy Sunday!  It's been a busy weekend and I had the opportunity to go to our County Fair for the first time since the pandemic, which was so nice.  Today was a rainy Sunday, so what else could I do but laundry and opening a bottle of wine.  Tonight I've opened a bottle of one of my perennial favorite Cabernets from Seven Hills, the 2017 Seven Hills Summit View Cabernet Sauvignon.  The Summit View Vineyard was planted with Clone 191 Cabernet, and the terroir is ideal for this grape, creating a truly special wine year after year.  So, let's see what this vintage has to offer!

The wine is a deep, inky black at the center with bright ruby along the edges.  Give it a swirl and take a deep breath and you're transported to the tobacco smoke infused leather furniture of an Ivy League club as resist the urge to take a healthy sip.  Once you do, your mouth is coated with a velvety rich wine, that has a wide array of black fruit and a healthy zing of acidity at the back end.  Earthy, rich, velvety smooth, this is the kind wine you can sip over conversations with old friends for hours.

Overall, I'd rate this wine a solid 9, as it's just a pleasure to drink and a wine that has yet to disappoint.  This wine would be great with hearty steaks, lamb, or even summer fare like barbecued ribs or hearty brats.  Tonight, I'm enjoying this wine with a rare grilled Angus porterhouse along with grilled garlic scapes and asparagus, and some oven roasted fingerling sweet potatoes.  Cheers!