2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

Good deep ruby-red. Smoky plum, tobacco leaf, spices and eucalyptus on the nose. Lush and spicy, with good underlying minerality to the plum, licorice and marzipan flavors. Quite dry and uncompromising cabernet, finishing with a broad dusting of tannins and very good length. I'd give this a year or two in the cellar.

The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Hourglass has a dense purple color and a sweet nose of licorice, black currants, smoke, cedar, and some high-class subtle oak in the background. The wine is full-bodied, avoids some of the harder tannins that sometimes arise in this vintage, and has a very layered, multi-dimensional mouthfeel and finish. This is a beauty that can be drunk now or cellared for 20 or more years. The well-known Bob Foley has been the consistent force behind these high quality wines from Hourglass. Their top wine comes from a gently sloping vineyard near Napa’s Lodi Lane. They have now added another group of wines under the Blue Line designation which exhibit considerable promise, although the production figures are relatively low, about 350-500 cases of each of the Blue Line offerings. Tel. (707) 968-9332; Fax (707) 968-9337