Today’s wine hits all of the right notes, Operatives, and it earns our highest recommendation.

What luck! Ackerman Family Vineyards gave us special access to their coveted private Library, where we uncovered the stunning, aged to perfection, fruit aplenty 2006 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. This 13-year-old wine still has plenty of life left in it. Heck, we’ll be cellaring some for another several years!

This beautifully aged wine has plenty going on on the nose, with aromas of black cherry, red currant, spiced plum, cherry bark, soft leather, spice box, sweet tobacco and subtle slate mineral. On the palate, this wine shows its maturity - which means that the fruits are soft and elegant. There is still plenty of flavor left in this perfectly aged wine, though, with black cherry, plum, red currant, pomegranate, grilled Bing cherry, bramble, coffee bean, spice box and a hint of cherry tobacco leaf.

Ackerman, which released its first vintage in 2007 (their 2003 Cabernet), has developed a reputation for the highest levels of quality. They are the only winery in the coveted Coombsville Appellation to have received a difficult to obtain California Certified Organic Farm (CCOF) label. Their Cabernets are known for their elegance and lower alcohol levels.

The Napa Valley AVA (American Viticultural Area) is located in Napa County, California, United States. Napa Valley is considered one of the foremost wine regions in the world. Wine grapes thrive here, due to the combination of geography, the Mediterranean climate and geology of the region, which are perfect for wine grape growing. The region was established as a wine-growing region with its first commercial vineyard, which was planted in 1858.