2016 - Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Gramercy Cellars, Columbia Valley

Full ruby-red. Crushed blackberry, cassis and minerals on the nose, plus a pungent note of black pepper. Seamless and bright on entry, then utterly smooth in the energetic middle palate, with flavors of black fruits, fruity peppercorn, licorice and graphite given a tightly coiled spring by firm acidity. A classic of its slow-ripening vintage, this very intense, backward wine finishes with serious but utterly suave tannins and slowly mounting floral persistence. A bit more peppery and less spicy than the 2015 release but with terrific energy and similar quality. If anything, this '16 tightened up with extended aeration. Lay it down for at least a few years.