The 2016 vintage expresses rich red and dark fruit, fragrant violets, rose petals, graphite and black tea aromatics. A wine of great distinction, it melds power and structure with freshness and elegance in seamless layers of ultra-concentrated blueberry and black cherry with hints of baking spices and cassis to a lengthy finish.
Blend: 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Malbec and 5% Petit Verdot
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Backus Vineyard is a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Malbec and 5% Petit Verdot, aged for 24 months in 100% new French oak and bottled in Jan 2019. Deep garnet-purple colored, it charges out of the gate with bold blackberry pie, black currant pastilles and warm blueberries notes with touches of menthol, mocha, cardamom, iron ore and cinnamon stick plus a waft of black olives. The full-bodied palate delivers mouth-coating black and blue fruits with a vast array of earth and spicy sparks, framed by firm, grainy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing long and mineral laced.
JS96
James Suckling
Shows very ripe fruit and excitement on the nose with dark berries, blueberries and pine-needle undertones. Full-bodied, firm and chewy with a solid and rich finish. Seriously structured red here. Try it after 2022.
