ILONA NAPA HOWELL MTN 99/00

Look – Dark garnet with a dark, deep and inky core. Bright ruby edges accentuate the look of the wine. When swirled, the wine settles quickly, leaving behind alternating clusters of slow fat legs and fast thin legs that ring the glass Smell – The intriguing aromas of this wine hit you the moment you open the bottle, delivering unique aromas of vanilla, marshmallow, and earthy barnyard, with dark fruits of dark mixed berries, cassis, black currant and smoky plum. These are followed by soft spice and cedar Feel – Round, velvet smooth and dry, this is a robust and full-bodied wine with great structure with super-fine and medium-firm tannins. A slight minerality contributes to the fine-grained feel Taste – Focused and complex with flavors of smoky blackberry, black currant, dark cranberry and black plum, with follow-on flavors of licorice and cigar box Finish – Long and mouth-coating, lingering with flavors of ripe black fruit, spice, wood and minerality