2019 Aperture Nomad Sugarloaf Vineyard Merlot

The 2019 Nomad is 55% Merlot, 33% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon. Only produced in 2014, 2016, and 2019, this may be the best wine I have tried from Aperture. A fully saturated (almost black) red, it’s layered and explosive in its aromas of fresh eucalyptus, black cherry pie, tobacco, leather, and fresh violets. Highly finessed and full-bodied, with a weightless feel and ripe tannins, it lends a haunting layered approach where it is hard to pin down and has a tremendous amount of life to it. This is going to be a fun wine to watch as it develops. Only 209 cases were produced. Drink it over the next 2 or 3 decades. Jesse Katz and winemaker Hillary Sjolund are producing some of Sonoma's best examples of Bordeaux-inspired blends today. The wines offer hedonistic pleasure across the range, offering high-octane power balanced with superb elegance, and with their top reds have significant aging potential.