Lewis Cellars Alec’s Blend 2015

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The 2015 Lewis Cellars Alec’s Blend is a wonderfully decadent effort.

The wine is balanced and loaded with luscious fruit, racy acids and plush dusty tannins.

Syrah forms the backbone of the blend at 50%, followed by 30% Merlot, 11% Cab Franc and 9% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the fruit was sourced across selected vineyards throughout Napa Valley.

The juice explodes across the palate with waves of blackberry and blueberry flavors that are intertwined with chocolate, sweet creamy oak, licorice baking spices and flowers.

The unbridled intensity and energy that gushes from the glass truly overpowers and awakens the senses, and is more than you would expect from a wine that costs just under $60.

Now “Old World Enthusiasts” may not appreciate this opulent style, but I thoroughly enjoyed it and highly recommend it as well.

I give this wine a rating of 9.2 on a 10 point scale.

Bennett Lane Red Maximus

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The 2007 Bennett Lane Maximus Red Feasting Wine was the perfect wine to celebrate my sister’s birthday.

This Cabernet based wine has healthy doses of Merlot and Syrah added in to round out the tannins and augment the jammy berry flavors.

This 10 year old wine was still oozing these youthful blackberry and blueberry fruits accompanied by rich polished tannins.

The wine was fun and easy to drink, which allowed us to focus on the celebration.

The wine retails for about $30, which is unheard of for a quality Napa Valley proprietary red blend.

 

Cakebread Cellars Merlot

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She’s a Beauty!

The 2007 Cakebread Merlot hits all of the right notes!

The dark violet juice is flush with blueberry and cherry aromas. Rich, bold tastes of blueberries and plum eventually give way to black cherry and creamy vanilla flavors that linger endlessly on the silky smooth tannins.

This lively 10 year old is drinking exceptionally well right now, and is a must try if you can find it. It currently retails for about $55-$60.

Jarvis Lake William

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The 2003 Jarvis Lake William Napa Valley is still a very charming wine.

This Bordeaux style blend is comprised of 39% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Cabernet Franc, 22% Merlot with the balanced split between Petit Verdot and Malbec.

The color is still a violet opaque purple, while the nose provides light fruit aromas which is a pretext of what is about to come on the 1st sip.  After decanting for an hour the tart fruit softened and the wine opened nicely. The palate was now elegant as soft juicy dark fruit and blackberry flavors were followed by leather, mushroom and earthy velvet tannins that lingered effortlessly for 3+ seconds.

The back label recommends that the wine should be consumed within 7 years, but I disagree as the additional years in the cellar has this wine living up to its Bordeaux blend pedigree as it drinks more like an aged wine from the Pauillac region in Bordeaux.

The 2003 Lake William is hard to find now, but it priced for $70 when release back in 2005.  Today it retails for about $125, while newer vintages retail for about $150.

On a separate note, in my opinion, Jarvis has the best underground cave tours in all of Napa Valley.  So the next time you are in the Valley, schedule a tour and tasting in their caves.

You will not be disappointed!

 

Mt Brave Merlot

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Don’t let the word Merlot on the label fool you, This is one Badass Wine!

The 2012 Mt. Brave Merlot is chock full of mountain fruit from Mt. Vedeer, which produces tiny berries with the type of concentrated and complex flavors that one would expect to find in a Napa Cab.

This is a well structured, full body, ruby color wine.  It is loaded with blackberry, cassis and mocha flavors, that are nicely balanced with juicy acids and well rounded tannins on its long finish.

I really enjoyed this bottle and found it well worth its $65 price tag.