2010 Sixteen By Twenty Cabernet Sauvignon Napa

If you follow my newsletters and social posts you’ll recall that over the past three years I’ve been quite enthusiastic about the 2010 wines. Purity. That’s the word that described these wines every time we barrel tasted and that’s the word that describes them in the bottle. The 16x20 2010 has a saturated, deep, blackish purple color – it is our darkest 16x20 Cabernet to date and that’s saying something. It is oh so young right now but there is so much stuffing in this wine that it’s bursting to show – more opulent and intense at this early stage than previous vintages. The nose is clean and round with a pure fullness of macerated soaked fruit. Ripe Blackberry is compellingly dominant but Blackcurrant is only slightly in the background. There is a whisper of Raspberry jam that is enveloped by lively red, sour cherries around the edges. Nuances of dried mint, anise, charred cedar, and a welcome aroma of violets keeps things complex. Mocha chocolate can be found lurking. The flavors must again be simply described as pure. Pure, intense Blackberry melds into Blackcurrant with Black cherry showing up on the finish. Graphite, smoky cedar, spice notes and enveloping silty tannins begin to make up the complex layers of flavor but it’s the purity of the fruit that defines this wine. There is a volume and expansiveness of the pure flavors that is hard to describe but its impression lingers as the sappy black fruits coat your mouth in the long and lingering finish. Is there new French Oak here? – yes; 78% – but it’s so perfectly integrated that you won’t focus on it; you’ll just enjoy the ideal harmonious balance. Pure, intense balance. 1/2013 Paul Hobbs Consulting Winemaker only 400 cases made