Bond Vecina (slightly torn label) 2002

"The big, rich, brawny 2002 Vecina Proprietary Red is a primordial, tannic beast with a beef blood-like concentration, a huge, opaque purple color, and notes of scorched earth, blackberries, chocolate, camphor, roasted meats, and cassis. It's as if I took an aged porterhouse steak from Peter Lugar's famed restaurant, put it in a Cuisinart, and aged it in new French oak. Give this amazing wine 5-6 years of bottle age, and drink it over the following 20-25 years.

This is the newest brainchild of the irrepressible Bill Harlan and his sensational winemaking team of Bob Levy and Michel Rolland. These are all 100% terroir-based Cabernet Sauvignons from distinctive sites in Napa Valley. There are 600-700 cases of each cuvee. The Melbury represents a hillside vineyard site above Lake Hennessy, the St. Eden is a valley floor vineyard in the Oakville corridor, and Vecina is a western hillside vineyard adjacent to Harlan Estate. I also tasted a stunning wine from Spring Mountain, which may be the next site that Bill Harlan offers to Bond's mailing list clients. The quality of these singular, extraordinary offerings is world-class."
-Robert Parker, Wine Advocate