Saturday, April 23, 2016

Viader 'V' 2002 Proprietary Napa Red Blend

Viader 'V' 2002 Proprietary Napa Valley Red Blend for gala family dinner

With son Alec visiting home from NYC with g-friend Viviana to run the Naperville 1/2 Marathon on her birthday weekend, it seemed only fitting we pull out a bottle of 'V' for our gala family dinner celebration. This might be considered the flagship label of Viader. The 'V' has a double significance - it stands not only for Viader, but it also represents Petit Verdot, the core varietal in this Bordeaux blend. We featured this wine BYOB from a Magnum with our dinner at Angeli's Italian, our favorite neighborhood trattoria.

We discovered this limited release wine during our visit to the Viader Estate on lower Howell Mountain back in 2008

The “V” label is an exclusive Viader blend of Petit Verdot, to showcase the unique character of the the Petit Verdot varietal.  The fruit is sourced from a small three quarter acre vineyard plot in the northeast corner of the Viader Estate where the ground is particularly rocky resulting in especially small yields rendering highly concentrated fruit. Petit Verdot typically represents a miniscule percentage of a Bordeaux blend. It is included for its dark color and firm backbone to complement the other varietals, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and or Cabernet Franc. 
 


labelViader 'V' Napa Valley Red Blend 2002

The blend for the 2002 release was 72% Petit Verdot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 3% Cabernet Franc, almost upside down from a 'normal' Bordeaux blend.


This was dark garnet colored, medium-full bodied, bursting with bright vibrant black raspberry, ripe plum and currant fruits, accented by a layer of mocha, hints of leather and earth on a tangy bright silky smooth but firm tannin lingering finish.

RM 93 points.

https://www.cellartracker.com/wine.asp?iWine=70507

http://www.viader.com/