I found out last week that our dear friend Dave L. passed away. My wife and I had met Dave in line at a Chateau Montelena Movable Feast party over 20 years ago, struck up a conversation, and had been friends since. Dave was one of the 3 people that I learned the most about wine from, along with my late Uncle Bill and Robert Parker. Dave was a big collector of wine, and his passion was collecting large format bottles. He had several hundred, ranging from magnums to a 27-liter bottle. He was very generous in opening these treasures for guests and for dinner parties. He hosted us in Southern California during our trips down there and we hosted him when he was visiting Napa. He introduced us to people like Mary Novak and Ric Forman, and we became huge fans of Spottswoode and Forman, because of him. Dave had been in declining health for a number of months, so it was not a complete surprise when we heard the news, but it still left us numb.
To honor Dave, we opened a bottle of the 1997 Montelena Estate last Saturday. What a bottle of wine. Bought directly from the winery and stored in our cellar, this bottle was everything that one would want from a 23 year old bottle of wine. Rich dark fruits, notes of earth, cedar, mint and spice with a silky texture and super-fine tannins. This bottle should continue to drink well for at least the next 5-10 years.
Below is a picture of Dave with a 27-liter bottle of Steltzner Cabernet, opened in October of 2018. RIP, Dave, and thank you for your friendship.
Ed
