2006 Vinum Napa Valley Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon

Tastes like: Cherry, chocolate, spice
Pairs with: Beef, mushroom dishes
Good for: Weekend dinners
Drink this: Now
Alcohol: 14.5%

The two-man Vinum team comprises Richard Bruno and Chris Condos, who became friends while attending UC Davis together. After graduation, Chris went to work for Pine Ridge Vineyards as an enologist, and Richard was hired as a distiller for Bonny Doon Vineyard.

They collaborated to create their first Vinum Cellars wine in 1997, Pointe Blanc, a blend of Chenin Blanc, Viognier and Roussanne. Since then, it's been full-steam ahead for the Vinum team, which now makes a line of wallet-friendly wines that appeal to just about every palate.

Vinum's philosophy is simple: Let the fruit speak for itself. The grapes for this wine come from a sustainably farmed Atlas Peak vineyard specially selected for its low yields. For this reserve bottling, Condos and Bruno selected their finest six barrels to age for an additional 30 months, meaning that only a scant 137 cases were made of this wine.

Tasting Note
Another example of Vinum Cellars magic-making in the cellar, this Cabernet is well-integrated, approachable and balanced, yet coats the glass in a luscious purple hue. The wine's bouquet boasts rich cedar, chocolate and cherry notes. In the glass, more spices, fresh roses and a touch of leather emerge. Bruno suggests pairing this wine with grass-fed beef, such as a dry-rubbed rib eye served with a morel mushroom reduction. For vegetarians, try a mushroom and eggplant dish, which will go well with the wine's juicy fruit and woodsy tannins.

—Stephanie DeMasi

Stephanie DeMasi has been General Manager and Managing Partner of Juslyn Vineyards on Spring Mountain for the last eight years. A New York City native, Stephanie graduated from Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration and moved to Napa in 2002 to experience the harvest. She has earned the Advanced Certificate of the Wine and Spirits Education Trust and a Wine Spectator Restaurant Wine List Award in 2006 for her work at fresh, a restaurant in New York City. Follow Stephanie on Twitter: @StephanieDeMasi