Dark beautiful clear ruby with an abrupt edge. Gorgeous color. Nose rises up bitter and earthily brash, concentrated berry buried down deep but very visible in the cracks. Kindof a cheap red nose at first, but not at ALL un-enjoyable. Dull throbs of vanilla completely over-ridden by cassis and smoothed out granite tell of a barrel programme under 25% new. Decanted heavily, and it is definitely taking its grand old time opening up. Bright funk is the product of plentiful air: barnyard blended with all the pepper.

In the mouth, ridiculously briary fruit. No cavity-causing concentration or sugar here, this thing shells out bitter decadent but un-viscous mountain fruit in spades, dryness aching up into the middle and spell-binding tannin overtaking in a finish that will make you wipe your teeth over and over, peppery blackberry ridiculousness and wracking tannin hand-in-hand down the slip-n-slide.

I get in trouble for not reviewing Grocery Outlet wines until they are sold out–and the good ones go FAST. Well, here we are on the first day of the 20% off sale and I’m bringing you this one LIVE and HOT. This is a GREAT wine. Well worth the 19.99 at GO. I would pay 45 or 50 for this without blinking. No indication on the label what it is, but I am calling it now: bec and CF, 14…… hmmm TWO. That’s my final answer. If you live around Grocery Outlet, I would go buy as many as you can afford.

2016 ACUMEN ‘Mountainside’ Red Wine Napa Valley 14.0

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