Vintage Retrospective: The 2010 Napa Valley Cabernets (May 2020)

Saturated bright ruby to the rim. Musky aromas of blackcurrant, licorice, tobacco and graphite minerality. Large-scaled, plush and sweet on entry, then an utterly seamless wave of black fruits, minerals and cocoa powder on the palate. Lovely fruit sweetness nicely supported by serious broad tannins. A big boy for this bottling but not heavy. This wonderfully plush, pliant, tactile wine displays the ripeness of the vintage in spades; it's almost porty in its richness but benefits from an element of violet lift. Finishes with serious but ripe tannins and slowly mounting length. A knockout today but may be even better as it burns off a bit more of its baby fat. In fact, my sample showed more shape–even juiciness–with 72 hours in the recorked bottle, without any loss of fruit. A beauty.