Nichols Wine Company - Mount Veeder - Cabernet Sauvignon 2021
Price: $56.00
| Producer | Nichols Wine Company |
| Country | U.S. |
| Region | California |
| Subregion | Mount Veeder, Napa Valley |
| Varietal | Cabernet Sauvignon |
| Vintage | 2021 |
| Sku | 017946 |
| ABV | 14.90% |
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One glance at Britt Nichols' resumé and it’s no wonder that her wines are as great as they are; she’s learned from the best. A quick gig at Chappellet was her launching pad. From there, she spent time at Jordan Winery and Keller Estate. Her education on the finer side of Napa Cabernet came at Peter Michael, working under Nicholas Morlet. Her time with Morlet was spent focused on Les Pavots in Knights Valley, one of California’s Grand Crus, learning how to balance power with finesse, which is always the difference between good and great with Cabernet. Her current stop on the Napa ladder to greatness is with Philippe Melka, one of the top winemakers in all California. Each stint has prepared her to make stunning Cabernet Sauvignon. In what might be the very best vintage of her “night job”, her 2021 Mt Veeder Cab is a monumental wine, capitalizing on the dry conditions of the vintage to make deep, structured wines infused with dark fruit cores and sumptuous tannins.
Britt’s Mount Veeder Cabernet was drawn from one parcel precariously perched on a rugged ridge top. Its 25-year-old vines are rooted in low ph, sandstone, and shale-laden soil. Britt looked to feature the pristine, pure qualities of the mountain fruit, choosing to vinify and age in mostly neutral wood. The production is tiny, just 180 cases. Qualitatively, 2021 is one of the finest vintages I’ve tasted in the last decade in Napa Valley from Britt Nichols. Her 2021 Mt Veeder Cab is a heady, rich wine, with an inky-dark purple color. It aromatically blasts out of the glass, with a nose of graphite, blackberry jam, dark chocolate, and lavender. Layers of juicy fruit unravel over time, so be sure to drink in a big glass. It finishes long and fresh, with the backbone and mineral structure to pair perfectly with any roast of beef or to age gracefully in a proper cellar for the next 20+ years.
