Chateau Montelena
The Montelena Estate Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley, California, USA
This is my 1000th wine on Delectable and I wanted to post something that meant something special to me. @Steve Anderson brought this to an incredible tasting we attended last night at a beautiful cellar in the home of @Scott Kahn who graciously hosted many of our local tasting group among wives, neighbors and other friends of his. It was an exemplary night that I had to cut much shorter than I preferred because I had to pick up my teenage daughter from a friend's house. It was a perfect storm of many important elements impacting my life both past and present. First and foremost I am a Father and even though my daughter called me much earlier than I wanted on an evening of wine involving first growths, Napa giants and Burg greats....I left because I was needed. My daughter just recently started living with me and we've been through a lot in the last year. The men I was with are almost all parents who totally get the importance of my daughter in my life....they are exceptional Dad's who have raised special kids. I respect them immensely and that is why I am honored that wine brought me together with a group that I would not likely have become friends with without it. Wine does that. It bridges gaps. It creates memories. It develops community. Delectable has done that for me as well. I have never been much of a social media guy but something about this app drew me in. Yes it was the wine...but it's the people that make this "place" truly special. I've made legit friends here and I'm better for it. I spent an amazing weekend in Chicago this summer with @Roman Sukley and @DAG...those 2 couldn't have been more generous, gracious or cool. I've also developed a synergy with @Ron R @TheSkip @Martin G Rivard @David A Lentine @Kimberly Anderson and many others I've never met but I feel like I know somehow. These people know who they are.....but back to the wine. Montelena has a special place in my heart. When I passed the bar in '93 I brought a '87 Montelena to dinner that night. Just me and my Mom. She grew up on a dirt road in a small rural town in North Carolina. Not wine country. By the time we shared the Montelena she had become a pretty ardent Chardonnay fan but did not seem to take to reds. Wine was fairly new to me but I was always trying to get her engaged with my love of red wine. Unsuccessfully. That night we shared a meal and memories at the La Valencia hotel in La Jolla and enjoyed that bottle. She was proud of me and said so. Without reservation. I was the first person on either side of my family to graduate college and now I was a lawyer. The moment touched her and it has stayed with me always. She said "you're my only child and I'm so proud of the man you've become and now you're a lawyer. I can't believe it. More than that I can't believe how much I loooooove this wine. I'm actually more impressed with that!" My Mom had a sense of humor too 😉 and right there a lifetime memory was created over a bottle that now had meaning beyond the wine. When she passed suddenly in '05 I had dinner with her husband. I brought a '90 Ausone and a '91 Montelena. We toasted my Mom. I have no recollection of the $500 Ausone but the Montelena is still one of my top 10 wines of all time. Each wine is its own experience and those you share it with enhance that experience immeasurably. Cherish each glass....and @Steve Anderson thank you for granting my request by bringing that bottle. You know now why I chose it.
This is my 1000th wine on Delectable and I wanted to post something that meant something special to me. @Steve Anderson brought this to an incredible tasting we attended last night at a beautiful cellar in the home of @Scott Kahn who graciously hosted many of our local tasting group among wives, neighbors and other friends of his. It was an exemplary night that I had to cut much shorter than I preferred because I had to pick up my teenage daughter from a friend's house. It was a perfect storm of many important elements impacting my life both past and present. First and foremost I am a Father and even though my daughter called me much earlier than I wanted on an evening of wine involving first growths, Napa giants and Burg greats....I left because I was needed. My daughter just recently started living with me and we've been through a lot in the last year. The men I was with are almost all parents who totally get the importance of my daughter in my life....they are exceptional Dad's who have raised special kids. I respect them immensely and that is why I am honored that wine brought me together with a group that I would not likely have become friends with without it. Wine does that. It bridges gaps. It creates memories. It develops community. Delectable has done that for me as well. I have never been much of a social media guy but something about this app drew me in. Yes it was the wine...but it's the people that make this "place" truly special. I've made legit friends here and I'm better for it. I spent an amazing weekend in Chicago this summer with @Roman Sukley and @DAG...those 2 couldn't have been more generous, gracious or cool. I've also developed a synergy with @Ron R @TheSkip @Martin G Rivard @David A Lentine @Kimberly Anderson and many others I've never met but I feel like I know somehow. These people know who they are.....but back to the wine. Montelena has a special place in my heart. When I passed the bar in '93 I brought a '87 Montelena to dinner that night. Just me and my Mom. She grew up on a dirt road in a small rural town in North Carolina. Not wine country. By the time we shared the Montelena she had become a pretty ardent Chardonnay fan but did not seem to take to reds. Wine was fairly new to me but I was always trying to get her engaged with my love of red wine. Unsuccessfully. That night we shared a meal and memories at the La Valencia hotel in La Jolla and enjoyed that bottle. She was proud of me and said so. Without reservation. I was the first person on either side of my family to graduate college and now I was a lawyer. The moment touched her and it has stayed with me always. She said "you're my only child and I'm so proud of the man you've become and now you're a lawyer. I can't believe it. More than that I can't believe how much I loooooove this wine. I'm actually more impressed with that!" My Mom had a sense of humor too 😉 and right there a lifetime memory was created over a bottle that now had meaning beyond the wine. When she passed suddenly in '05 I had dinner with her husband. I brought a '90 Ausone and a '91 Montelena. We toasted my Mom. I have no recollection of the $500 Ausone but the Montelena is still one of my top 10 wines of all time. Each wine is its own experience and those you share it with enhance that experience immeasurably. Cherish each glass....and @Steve Anderson thank you for granting my request by bringing that bottle. You know now why I chose it.
Nov 6th, 2016
It's amazing to think that this is a 25 year old wine. Closed at first but opening to reveal an intense display of dried berries, spice, potpourri, dusty soil and herbs. It has many years to go in the cellar.
It's amazing to think that this is a 25 year old wine. Closed at first but opening to reveal an intense display of dried berries, spice, potpourri, dusty soil and herbs. It has many years to go in the cellar.
Dec 4th, 2015
Really intense and developed. Drink now.
Really intense and developed. Drink now.
Sep 8th, 2015
Birth year wine!! Coco powder, saddle leather, pepper, stewed blackberry, licorice. Soft tannins with a touch of acidity left. long satisfying finish! Glad I opened it now don’t think it will@last much longer
Birth year wine!! Coco powder, saddle leather, pepper, stewed blackberry, licorice. Soft tannins with a touch of acidity left. long satisfying finish! Glad I opened it now don’t think it will@last much longer
May 30th, 2022
This is what CA cabernet used to be. After 25 years, this is a fantastic example of an older CA cab. Perfectly balanced, still boasting plenty of fruit but also the leather and anise notes one associates with an aged cabernet. Absolutely fantastic start to finish.
This is what CA cabernet used to be. After 25 years, this is a fantastic example of an older CA cab. Perfectly balanced, still boasting plenty of fruit but also the leather and anise notes one associates with an aged cabernet. Absolutely fantastic start to finish.
Sep 27th, 2015