We spent Christmas dinner at our dear friends’ home and the evening couldn’t have been better. Great company and terrific wine. One of the wines we had that evening was the 2003 Silver Oak Alexander Valley cabernet sauvignon. This is the most recently released vintage from Silver Oak coming out to the public only in August. It’s young and will definitely stand the test of time. I would love to jump forward in time 10-15 years and taste this side by side. Anyway, on to the tasting. This wine had a deep purple color of a young wine. The aromas were so very intriguing. On my first sniff I got hit with chocolate covered cherries. Not your typical ones though. These cherries were coated with dark sensuous chocolate. The next thing that hit me was the smell of toasted coconut. You know those coconut macaroons? It smelled just like those when they come out of the oven. On the palate this was like drinking satin. Big mouth feel and an explosion of flavor. Soft satiny raspberries and cherries with pepper and spice mingling with that dark chocolate and the slightest hints of leather. This was an enjoyable wine and is sure to have a long and interesting life.