For as stressful as last week was, this week has been surprisingly pleasant. Sure, there is a lot to do at work in preparation for taking three days off, but it was clear by mid-day on Monday that everything would fall into place. Granted, I had book club last night, which definitely cut into my travel preparation time, and I also made happy hour and dinner plans for tonight instead of saving it for packing. Overall, though, it hasn’t made a difference because Monday was just one of those successful days. Have you ever had that happen—all of your meetings are productive, all of your projects are on schedule, and, surprisingly, everything suddenly is running smoothly? That was Monday. To make things even better, Hubby prepared and started baking the potatoes for dinner, so by the time I arrived home, I simply had to season the steak and open my wine—a 2006 Charles Krug Cabernet Sauvignon, which I originally purchased to help study for my WSET blind tasting, although never ended up opening.

The 2006 Charles Krug Cabernet Sauvignon (winery, snooth) is an interesting blend of grapes—85% Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, 6% Petit Verdot grapes, 3% Syrah grapes, 2% Malbec grapes, 2% Cabernet Franc grapes, 1% Petite Syrah grapes, and 1% Merlot grapes. The color was a nice, deep purple with ruby tints and very noticeable legs. On the nose, there were black cherries, blackcurrant, and blackberries, along with a hint of fennel, all-spice, and cloves. In the mouth, there were very pronounced black fruits—mainly black cherries—mixed with cloves and a touch of cocoa powder. The wine had nice, solid tannins, good acidity, and a lengthy finish, although it was slightly too “hot.”

Is this worth a glass after work? Definitely! If you see this wine in the store, grab it; you won’t be disappointed. At $26, this wine offers nice complexity, particularly considering how young it still is. Plus, the wine has a bit of diversity, as it drinks well on its own, but also plays well with food. As if all that isn’t enough of a recommendation, while it’s enjoyable now, the 2006 Charles Krug Cabernet Sauvignon is still young, so I think it has some good aging potential. On night one with this wine, I paired it with a grilled lemon-herb salmon and rice, which was a very nice pairing as the fish helped calm the slightly high alcohol. On my second night, I paired this wine with a grilled filet mignon that was simply seasoned and a baked yam. This pairing was a more traditional, but there was clearly a reason why—it was perfection. The Worcestershire sauce on my steak enhanced the spices in my wine to create absolute pleasure in every bite and pure enjoyment in every sip. I will say that three days with the wine, though, was one too many, as by that point, the wine tasted more like Robitussin than it did Cabernet Sauvignon.

Overall: 4