This is mind blowing on the nose with sweet tobacco chocolate cedar cigar box and licorice. Full bodied and round with a bright and velvety tannin structure. Starts off slow but then runs off. This is fabulous. Massive finish. Delicious today but will get better with an extra 3 years in the cellar. 2013.

Super dark inky opaque ruby with a dense red rim. The nose becomes more and more expressive as the wine is allowed to breathe. Very pure and very concentrated the essence of black cherry and cassis layers with other black and blue fruits dark chocolate and a big dollop of blackberry jam. A hint of licorice on the nose becomes is more expressive on the palate. The wood component reveals itself at the very end and combines with the fruit core and fine plush tannins to produce a solid lengthy finish. As expected the 2008 Special Selection is a tooth-staining wine capable of evolving for at least a decade.

The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection is the first example of this cuvee to include Merlot (about 14%) in the blend. The Merlot component has given the wine a cocoa/chocolate nuance to its black currant licorice-infused fruit. The tannins are velvety soft and the wine is beautifully textured and full-bodied. It is ideal for drinking now and over the next 15 years.

Beautifully crafted rich intense and powerful yet supple graceful and polished offering a generous core of spicy blackberry black licorice wild berry and light cedary notes. Full-bodied and expressive this is both approachable now and sure to improve for several years. Drink now through 2020. -J.L.