Colgin, IX Estate, Napa Valley 2006

From the Pritchard Hill Vineyard, the 2006 IX Proprietary Red Estate is a blend of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot. The good news is that there are 1,500 cases of this cuvee. It, too, reveals the noble sweetness of tannin, the extraordinary rich, intense mouthfeel, and sumptuous aromas of flowers, burning embers, blackberries, blueberries, spice box, and cedar. With extraordinary intensity, beautiful purity, a texture and flavors that build incrementally on the palate, and a significantly long finish, this is a perfect wine.

Saturated ruby. Multidimensional nose offers cassis, lavender, crushed rock, minerals and pungent herbal notes of sage and bay laurel. Wonderfully suave on entry, then vibrant and perfumed in the middle palate, conveying an impression of complete ripeness and fullness without weight. This expands impressively on the back end, making the superb '05 look almost pinched by comparison. No spurious sweetness here. One of my early candidates for wine of the vintage.