2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder

Knocking on the door of perfection is the 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder from the Veeder Peak Vineyard. The volcanic rock and sandy soils seem to always provide something that winemaker Chris Carpenter crafts into a compelling Cabernet Sauvignon. With an opaque, bluish/purple color as well as blackberry, blueberry, licorice, incense and floral notes, this is a multidimensional, blockbuster Cabernet Sauvignon, with sweet tannin, adequate acidity and staggering depth and power. It can be drunk now as well as over the next two decades. Bravo! One of the great gems of the Jackson family wine empire, these three wines can generally be counted on to be among the very best produced in Napa year in and year out. Chris Carpenter has been the long-time winemaker, and these are all 100% Cabernet Sauvignons aged in almost all new French oak. They come from three vineyards that have totally different microclimates. The Diamond Mountain site in the northwestern sector of Napa Valley; the Howell Mountain site, which is the Keyes vineyard high on the eastern Vaca Mountain chain; and the Veeder Peak vineyard located on the Mayacamas mountain range on the western edge of Napa. These are all gorgeously proportioned, full-bodied, brilliant expressions of Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. In many ways, these wines, at least for the last decade, have been true first-growths of Napa Valley. Tel. (707) 948-1968