More about the 2009 AUBURN JAMES "NAPA VALLEY" MERITAGE Not all wines get better with age, but when they do, something magical can happen... At 5 years in the bottle, a flawlessly built, perfectly aged wine should have all the elements perfectly integrated, and can sometimes render a bouquet that will stop you in your tracks. That's exactly what our entire tasting panel experienced with this wine. Immediately grabbing our attention with it's striking opaque purple color that draws you in to a fully developed bouquet of majestic blackberries, white chocolate, truffle, incense and unsmoked cigar tobacco... Saturating your palate in brilliantly expressive flavors of sweet black fruits, creme de cassis and graphite, this wine is irresistible now, yet will age gracefully for another 5 years. Checking in at nearly 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and encompassing all five of the Bordeaux varietals, this remarkable wine was sourced from four distinct vineyards located in Calistoga, Yountville, Coombsville, and Napa. Kept for 26 months in oak barrels, the flavors are gorgeously integrated, and open up beautifully in the glass. The last time that we offered a perfectly aged wine was the 2007 Ascent and we received hundreds of re-orders, which continue to roll in, even know the wine is long gone... For those of you who loved the Ascent, I can't wait until you taste this one... Tasting Notes: "Full bodied and complex, this blend of the five traditional Bordeaux varietals presents aromas of dark plum, blueberry, vanilla, tobacco, and on the palate adds caramel, dark chocolate and a hint of black licorice with dried herbs. It has balance and a complexity that builds toward a long finish. Each varietal was crushed and fermented separately and then barrel aged in new and second fill French oak until the second racking. Over several weeks we defined the blend and returned the blended wine to barrels to finish aging before bottling." Cabernet Sauvignon 49% | Merlot 38% | Cabernet Franc 6% | Malbec 5% | Petit Verdot 2%