Chateau Montelena
The Montelena Estate Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
Napa Valley, California, USA
Monthly WTF group recap. Theme this month was “bring something special”. Normally we taste all of the wines blind, but we decided to do a relaxed night with amazing wines at a great restaurant. Spectacular evening!
Able to taste this next to the ‘98...this is in a better spot now. A very round, soft and plush profile. There are mulberry, soft plum, fig and cherry liqueur aromatics while the palate showed more bayleaf, faint traces of herbs and leather, underripe blackberries and cherries. This actually drank quite youthful. Enjoy now! Thanks @Will Adams .
Monthly WTF group recap. Theme this month was “bring something special”. Normally we taste all of the wines blind, but we decided to do a relaxed night with amazing wines at a great restaurant. Spectacular evening!
Able to taste this next to the ‘98...this is in a better spot now. A very round, soft and plush profile. There are mulberry, soft plum, fig and cherry liqueur aromatics while the palate showed more bayleaf, faint traces of herbs and leather, underripe blackberries and cherries. This actually drank quite youthful. Enjoy now! Thanks @Will Adams .
Got to take advantage of another Wednesday Wine Committee and boy was it worth it. Wow! Killer wines brought by Glenn for his 60th! As always, wines tasted blind. 1 sparkler, 3 whites, 4 reds, 1 dessert wine.
This is how I prefer my Montelena's. I don't enjoy them young and honestly, I don't enjoy them at the 10yr mark as much as I do at the 20+yr mark. Great example of Napa cab aged well...most thought left bank Bordeaux. Not a lot of leather or white pepper...plenty of fruit and acidity left here. Tasted like it was MAYBE 10yrs old. 👌
Got to take advantage of another Wednesday Wine Committee and boy was it worth it. Wow! Killer wines brought by Glenn for his 60th! As always, wines tasted blind. 1 sparkler, 3 whites, 4 reds, 1 dessert wine.
This is how I prefer my Montelena's. I don't enjoy them young and honestly, I don't enjoy them at the 10yr mark as much as I do at the 20+yr mark. Great example of Napa cab aged well...most thought left bank Bordeaux. Not a lot of leather or white pepper...plenty of fruit and acidity left here. Tasted like it was MAYBE 10yrs old. 👌
Impressive Napa Cab from the era when they could age for more than five years before losing much of their charm.
Christmas dinner, 1992.
Impressive Napa Cab from the era when they could age for more than five years before losing much of their charm.
Christmas dinner, 1992.
Beautiful tannins. A bit of the carriage pullers but well integrated
Beautiful tannins. A bit of the carriage pullers but well integrated
Feb 8th, 2015
Drinking beautifully out of magnum. Too bad 1 of the 2 mags was corked. :(
Drinking beautifully out of magnum. Too bad 1 of the 2 mags was corked. :(
Jan 12th, 2015
What a beautiful wine, earthy but with pretty red fruit remaining. From Magnum
What a beautiful wine, earthy but with pretty red fruit remaining. From Magnum
Jan 12th, 2015
Succulent. Elegant, ripe fruit with just enough structure to have kept it fresh. Still bright, but acids are disappearing and I'd suggest drinking up in the next few years.
Succulent. Elegant, ripe fruit with just enough structure to have kept it fresh. Still bright, but acids are disappearing and I'd suggest drinking up in the next few years.
Dec 19th, 2014
1992 vintage. Very, very close to Japanese auction market quality with fill, cork, capsule and label nearly immaculate. Decanted and tasted immediately and over the course of 3 hours. Expected amount of sed. What a ride! Having tasted this back in the day when first released, recalled an unusual (for this property) amount of richness in the frontal palate. Wasn't there initially but rolled in for a cameo approx 45 mins after decant. Then...vanished at the 1 hour open mark. First whiff of the nose was fresh, clay kitty litter. This morphed into graphite after 15-20 mins. Body was surprisingly light early on, then fattened up after 30-40 mins to medium status. Impressions were of a leaner effort, then things got positively jammy with unexpected fruit hither and yon. This remained for approx 1.25 hours, then the entire performance, body included, thinned out with their old-school, estate-expected, aged leather punch combined with dark-skinned fruit, mountain grip and a little touch of grey sea salt. No food involved during the experience. The 1991 Montelena Estate Cab is nearest and dearest but this following vintage was an absolute, palate-bending acid(ity) trip. Looking forward to the next trip...er...show. 11.25.23.
1992 vintage. Very, very close to Japanese auction market quality with fill, cork, capsule and label nearly immaculate. Decanted and tasted immediately and over the course of 3 hours. Expected amount of sed. What a ride! Having tasted this back in the day when first released, recalled an unusual (for this property) amount of richness in the frontal palate. Wasn't there initially but rolled in for a cameo approx 45 mins after decant. Then...vanished at the 1 hour open mark. First whiff of the nose was fresh, clay kitty litter. This morphed into graphite after 15-20 mins. Body was surprisingly light early on, then fattened up after 30-40 mins to medium status. Impressions were of a leaner effort, then things got positively jammy with unexpected fruit hither and yon. This remained for approx 1.25 hours, then the entire performance, body included, thinned out with their old-school, estate-expected, aged leather punch combined with dark-skinned fruit, mountain grip and a little touch of grey sea salt. No food involved during the experience. The 1991 Montelena Estate Cab is nearest and dearest but this following vintage was an absolute, palate-bending acid(ity) trip. Looking forward to the next trip...er...show. 11.25.23.
Nov 26th, 2023
