Aged Cali Cab

[HoosJustinG]

I bought some 60s and 70s Screaming Eagle from a guy named Rudy a few years ago ... stuff is terrible.

[Victor Hong]

Auction them at Acker.

[Joe Abruzzo]

Auction them at Acker.

Any issue with buying from Acker?

[Barry L i p t o n]

The problem with going for the great 91 or 94 vintages, or any 96 and earlier vintage is for the most part, they don't make wines the same way anymore. Seems to me that California Cab became much more Parkerized aroung 1997, and won't age the same way.

[Victor Hong]

The problem with going for the great 91 or 94 vintages, or any 96 and earlier vintage is for the most part, they don't make wines the same way anymore. Seems to me that California Cab became much more Parkerized aroung 1997, and won't age the same way.

I wonder if California winemakers might ever go back to the old style.

[Glenn L e v i n e]

Fruit nearly gone, mostly dust and flavor sprinkle-whiff of tannin. Good accompaniment for great Flannery but that’s about it.

Sort of boring en magnum, inaugural vintage.

[Victor Hong]

https://www.winebid.com/BuyWine/Item/7475462

A deal.

[P. Dias]

https://www.winebid.com/BuyWine/Item/7475462

A deal.

Thank for the tip, Victor. I haven’t used winebid before - want to send me a referral?

[D.Callahan]

https://www.winebid.com/BuyWine/Item/7475462

A deal.

I brought a bottle of this (Beringer Private Reserve 1992) to a dinner in downtown L. A.with a couple of WA Forum friends a few years ago. The theme was to bring some mature cabs to compare. The other 2 wines were a 1980 something Bordeaux and a mid 1990 Chateau Montelena. The wines were carefully decanted about 30 minutes before tasting and consumed over about an hour and a half. The Beringer won the first 45 minutes or so, then the CM nosed ahead as it retained its balanced flavor profile longer. Both CA Cabs were better than the Bordeaux which was not a Premier Cru but a decent 3rd or 4th. Neither CA Cab came across as an overblown fruit bomb even though Parker mentioned that the Beringer "reveals a sweeter style with higher alcohol and glycerin and an impression of unctuosity and viscosity. ...it possesses a dense purple color along with a sexy, up-front, effusive, flamboyant style." The Beringer faded a bit by the end of dinner. (Please don't sue me for the Parker quote!) The alcohol was not noticeable in the Beringer. All wines were purchased Direct from the winery/Chateau and stored well.

[Victor Hong]

https://www.winebid.com/BuyWine/Item/7475462

A deal.

Thank for the tip, Victor. I haven’t used winebid before - want to send me a referral?

Register and bid. Even after premium and sales tax, the price would be well below retail.

[P. Dias]

Done.

I thought you would received some sort of referral credit.

[Victor Hong]

It cleared at $80.

[Bob Davis]

The best CA Cab with age I’ve ever tasted was 1987 Kathryn Kennedy Estate.

[rsmithjr]

We opened a 1978 Diamond Creek Volcanic Hill 5 yrs ago on my 60th....it was Sublime

[T. Altmayer]

Last month I bought 7 1997 Beringer Merlot Bancroft Ranch for a total of $150 at Heritage Auction. Opened the first one last weekend and it was beautiful. So well balanced and nuanced. One of my better wine purchases.

[D.Callahan]

Last month I bought 7 1997 Beringer Merlot Bancroft Ranch for a total of $150 at Heritage Auction. Opened the first one last weekend and it was beautiful. So well balanced and nuanced. One of my better wine purchases.

Anytime I see a CA Cab from a reputable vintner that I know makes good wines at these auction sites I pay close attention as the only wines that jump in price are the trophy wines. You can get some great deals (Blankiet, Beringer, etc. etc.). I haven't gone for anything older than 1990 yet but I'm willing to try one if the price is right!

[Dan Kravitz]

As for the top four consecutive vintages for California Cab, Methuselah sez 1958 - 1961.

Big 'yes' to Kathryn Kennedy in general.

I've already posted that any traditional CA Cab from a good vintage (and the vintages with moderate ratings are often better than those with higher ratings) should easily improve to at least 20 years.

Question to get me flamed : Is 1992 the best vintage of that decade for California Cabernet?

Dan Kravitz

[Marshall Manning]

Question to get me flamed : Is 1992 the best vintage of that decade for California Cabernet?

Dan Kravitz

It's not even the best CA Cab vintage between 1991-1992 .

[Dan Kravitz]

Thank you Marshall, that's exactly the kind of comment I was looking for. Both of our opinions are worth every penny board members have paid !

More seriously, I have to agree that 1991 is a really great vintage, which I've preferred to 1994 and 1997, other high-hype vintages. I guess my question is more about big vs balanced.

Dan Kravitz

[Sarah S]

The best CA Cab with age I’ve ever tasted was 1987 Kathryn Kennedy Estate.

I hear you. I had a lovely tasting with some girlfriends (8 of us) the first weekend in March, right before everything went upside down. Most of them were new to wine and had never tasted much beyond BTG wines at restaurants or what you could buy at your local store. The focus was on Ca cabs, and I tried to compare the same winery across multiple vintages as well as different wines of the same vintage, based on what I have in my admittedly limited cellar. We had the following:

KK 89, 97
Cardinale 97
Staglin 97, 03
Spring Mtn 05 (mag)
Anderson's Conn Valley 05
Mt Brave 14
Fontanella 14 (bought from the local shop b/c I wanted another mt. veeder cab)
Salt Vine 2016

So...WOTN for the woman who is used to drinking box wine was the 89 Kathryn Kennedy. Her words "this is the best wine I have ever tasted in my life." Now she's ruined for life...BUT I can't tell you how great it was to see her light up like that. What an awesome wine.

[Joe Abruzzo]

Been doing some 90's back filling lately, picking up the following Cabs (mostly lower-mid tier wines that are drinking very well and offer great value)

95 Beringer Knights Valley 4 @ $35
95 Flora Springs Trilogy 2 @ $35
95 Whitehall Lane 2 @ $35
94 Whitehall Lane Morisoli 3 @ $35
94 Ravenswood Pickberry 2 @ $45
95 Vine Cliff Oakville 2 @ $50
95 Mt. Veeder 1 @ $40
96 Beaulieu Tapestry 2 @ $45
96 Pride Mountain Merlot 1 @ 45
97 Justin 2 @ $30
97 Mario Perelli Miriam 2 @ $35
94 Saddleback Cellars 1 @ $35
96 Chateau St. Jean Cinq Cepages 2 @ $60
90 Beaulieu Tapestry 1 @ $28
97 Wm. Harrison Rutherford Red 1 @ $35
97 Pride Mountain 6 @ $78

This brings me back up to 5 cases so will get more selective on what I pursue from here.

All listed costs are per bottle and include auction premiums/tax where applicable.

[Dave Gottschalk]

We just had a 95 and 96 FS trilogy-both were drinking great. Perfect if you like mature wine. I would buy cases at your price.

[Karl K]

I had a mid 90’s Whitehall Lane CS (not Morisoli) last year and it was disappointing.

But it was a Reserve.

No structure, no balance, a grab bag of flavors and thin mid palate to boot.

I say this as a big lover and collector of old CA cabs: they aren’t/weren’t all made to age.

Of course your purchase prices are great!

[P Intag]

I had a mid 90’s Whitehall Lane CS (not Morisoli) last year and it was disappointing.

But it was a Reserve.

No structure, no balance, a grab bag of flavors and thin mid palate to boot.

I say this as a big lover and collector of old CA cabs: they aren’t/weren’t all made to age.

Of course your purchase prices are great!

I picked up some 2001 and 2002 of the Reserve last year and was similarly unimpressed. They had too much extraction and ripeness for my palate. I've been going through some 1999 Marston Family Cabernet that I picked up at auction recently - now that's nice classic aged Napa Cabernet!

[Joe Abruzzo]

I had a mid 90’s Whitehall Lane CS (not Morisoli) last year and it was disappointing.

But it was a Reserve.

No structure, no balance, a grab bag of flavors and thin mid palate to boot.

I say this as a big lover and collector of old CA cabs: they aren’t/weren’t all made to age.

Of course your purchase prices are great!

Thanks for the feedback. I'm really looking forward to trying the 94 WL Morisoli. I've had the 96 WL Leonardini a few years ago and it was really nice. I've also had some of the mid-90's Reserves and I recall the 95 being really good. I believe Gary Galleron was the winemaker in 1994 at WL. I've enjoyed quite a few of the wines he made in the 90's and his own label 94 Cab was spectacular! (and I think he may have used some of the fruit from WL vineyards to make his wine) Not expecting too much from the regular 95 WL Cab, but hoping for a surprise.

[Victor Hong]

Whitehall Lane Merlot Leonardini Vineyard 1994 is a stunner.

[Ian Alper]

I posted in another thread on the magnum of 1992 Karl Lawrence Napa Cab we enjoyed over the weekend. Perfectly balanced and no sign of pruney decline.

[Joe Abruzzo]

Whitehall Lane Merlot Leonardini Vineyard 1994 is a stunner.

I believe Gary Galleron used Leonardini fruit for his own label Cab in 1994. That bottling was spectacular!

[Victor Hong]

https://www.winebid.com/BuyWine/Item/76 ... -Sauvignon

Moonshot appreciation of these older Howell Mountain reds.

[John Danza]

https://www.winebid.com/BuyWine/Item/76 ... -Sauvignon

Moonshot appreciation of these older Howell Mountain reds.

Nine bidders. I guess some people are catching on. Damn it!!!

[Victor Hong]

Dredging up in order to reminisce.

[Randy C]

I have never bought from Old & Rare Wine Co before, but today I bought 3 1993 La Jota Anniversary magnums for $199 each. One more left. They have the 1991 in magnum also.

I've discussed elsewhere on here but those 90's La Jota Anniversary wines are amazing right now. I've got 23 bottles form 92-97 and they just always shine. I'd take one of those at $100-150 versus almost all brand new $200-300 Napa cabs.

[Bryan Kandel]

For what it is worth, I had a 1980 Mayacamas for a 40th earlier in 2020 which was excellent. I am not sure how to price/ascribe QPR on these purchases other than taste. For me it was first and foremost delicious and for my purposes great bang for buck. Furthermore, it told me that you don't always need "perfect vintages" or "top scores" to enjoy something.

[Steve M]

Try to find 1995--2007 Seavey, 90's Togni, 97-2007 Forman, 90's Dunn. My opinion is that most of Calicabs are best in the 5-7 year old range including Pride, Switchback, Foley, Corra, Beringer, Carter, Silver Oak, Outpost, Rivers Marie, Larkmead, just to name a few. Cheers, mate.

[Arv R]

Try to find 1995--2007 Seavey, 90's Togni, 97-2007 Forman, 90's Dunn. My opinion is that most of Calicabs are best in the 5-7 year old range including Pride, Switchback, Foley, Corra, Beringer, Carter, Silver Oak, Outpost, Rivers Marie, Larkmead, just to name a few. Cheers, mate.

I haven't had all the names you mention, but I wouldn't have issues cellaring Pride, Beringer, or Larkmead far longer than 7 years.

Silver Oak....who knows...but it's been a long time since I've had one.

[NED VALOIS]

As others have said, '74,'78,'91 Mondavi Reserve Cabs , well stored, are GREAT !