2016 Bond, Pluribus, Napa Valley

This is very powerful and foursquare, showing dark fruit, iodine and crushed stones. Ink, too. Full-bodied and dense with friendly, chewy character. Tight and focused. Bright and real. Drink in 2023.

Pluribus vineyard is situated on Spring Mountain, producing a sometimes broody wine in its youth with tons of latent power and energy waiting to erupt. Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Pluribus is a little closed and youthfully mute to begin, slowly unfurling to offer glimpses at baked plums, crushed blackcurrants, boysenberries and redcurrant jelly plus suggestions of charcoal, black olives, Sichuan pepper and bay leaves with a waft of pain grille. Full-bodied, it has a rock-solid frame of very firm, ripe, grainy tannins and bold freshness supporting the muscular black fruit and savory accents, finishing with phenomenal length and loads of earthy layers.

Lastly, the 2016 Pluribus completes the lineup of just about pure perfection in Napa Valley Cabernet, and readers can’t go wrong with any of these 2016 Bond releases. As with the Vecina, the Pluribus is a powerful, structured wine that offers pure blue fruits (cassis, blueberries), notes of smoke tobacco, spice, and liquid rock, a full-bodied, expansive, opulent mouthfeel, and flawless balance. Its purity of fruit as well as its power, married to include finesse, sets this beauty up near the top of the pyramid. Give bottles 7-8 years of bottle age and enjoy over the following 3 decades.