Fabulous wine, not showing its age. The famous eucalyptus seemed more like mint, with roasted dark berries to round the flavor so. Big nose, deep fruit, and long finish. As perfect a bottle as one could want.
FYI, this was Joe Heitz’s all time favorite wine, per Joe himself.
I’ve been eyeballing this on the wine list at press.
Press will certainly make you pay for it, but the wine is tempting.
Working on an essay on Martha’s Vineyard at the moment and that is one vintage I have never tried. Its youthfulness does not surprise however.
Stan,
Considering the greats from 1968, 1970 and 1974, Joe might have had some to sell…
All three consecutive vintages were excellent for Heitz, but the '69 has lagged behind in reception, reputation and pricing.
Glad to hear it is still going strong as are so many of the older Martha’s.
Great note!
Fabulous color!
No, he told me this in 1980 and was long sold out of it by then. He mentioned it as being his favorite several times again in later years.
Personally, I always preferred the '70. Had all 4 of those wines ('68, '69, '70 and '74) many, many times. I will say, however, that the '69 had the best balance of the 4.
Great pictures and note Bill- not surprised the wine was stellar. I have never had the Martha’s from '69, but have had a few bottles of their Lot C-91 Cabernet from this vintage, which was produced from a blend of the last cask or two of the Napa bottling and a goodly chunk of Martha’s as Joe Heitz did not have enough Napa left for a bottling run and the Martha’s was still officially aging in cask and not yet ready for its own bottling. So the Lot C-91 was created to have some wine to sell in the interim to thirsty clients and it continues to drink beautifully down to this day. Fully concur on the greatness of the '68 and '70 as well, which give the more fabled 1974 a serious run for its money. One just has to love what the Heitz family had done and continues to do in the heart of Napa!
Thanks for that info. Didn’t know the back story of the Lot-91. Yes, I loved it back then, but have not had it for ages. Of the ‘68,‘69’, 70’ and '74 I do/did always prefer the '70. To me, the richest of the 4. Always a treat.