Monte Bello Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon

So good. Leaner vintage.

Decanted 2 hours in advance, 05 Monte Bello is absolutely rocking tonight, intensely aromatic wafting layers of currant, cedar, dark chocolate, baking spices and classy, integrated vanillin oak. It’s both structured and detailed and the palate shows both richness and focus with an elegant texture and fine grained tannins. It’s in an amazing spot but definitely has a long life ahead.

Lovely broad fruit. Some secondary notes but still super fresh and powerful. Great balance. Gorgeous

Tasted blind. Dark and opaque color. Notes of black cherry, stone/gravel, wood. Powerful in the mouth with great acidity. Long finish. There's a slight brettiness in this that always lingers but is not too distracting. A long debate ensued about what this could be. Mostly guesses are in the old world. The feminine nature of this leads me to go with a 59 Margaux guess. Nice wine, limited in rating because of the slight taint.

Decanted 2 hours before drinking. Still a bit primary as the tannins are not yet fully integrated but it is indeed showing terrific now. Shows an excellent balance of richness and elegance. Sweet black and blue fruits, creme de cassis, graphite and hints of licorice. Finishes wonderfully long, alluring and not at all heavy.

Beautiful blackcherry/blackberry, certainly slightly vegetal but pleasant with jalapeño, herbal, mod + acid, mod + acid,...long lasting elegant fruit with vanilla, baking spices...super well balanced...perfect example of a world between napa and Bordeaux! 🙌🏻 drank via live zoom with Ridge!

This is previous. Let this rest for another 3 - 5 years, at least.

Outstanding Cabernet Sauvignon from a reputable Santa Cruz vineyard. Double decanted for an hour. This vintage is light but bold at the same time. Only clocking in at 13.1%. It is thin on the palette but structured. Good tannin structure, light red fruit, minimal oak and charming acidity. After 10 years in the bottle, this vintage is just waking up. Luckily I have 2 more bottles in my cellar. After the first glass, your palette really adjusts to the light but subtle flavors. Don’t drink this after a big, bold wine. This should be the first wine you consume. Drink now with decanting or age for 20 more years.

Sensational.

Stunning. Great depth. Mostly tertiary with some fruits and gorgeous acidity. A real treat! The Jennifer Aniston wine of the night