1974 BV Cab Private Reserve

WINE TALK
1

Fine provenance, bought about 30 years ago from a reputable merchant. Fill just above bottom neck.



Opened clean, intact cork soaked at the bottom, otherwise fine. Decanted immediately. Some red color, but with a strong lurid orange tint. Initial aroma is merely old wine funk. Old, clumsy and funky at first taste.



One hour later: Color improved to brick red. Aromas are still old, but with some ripe red plums and a hint of currants, clearly Cabernet. Palate improved, there is still the post-autumnal age, but also a distant core of vigorous fruit, tannins resolved, acid present but barely obtrusive. There is balance, like an elderly person moving quickly and surely with a cane. This is a good glass, went well with lamb cooked over the open fire in the fireplace, but must have been better a long time ago. Rated 64 to start, 87 now. Cross your fingers and drink up.



Dan Kravitz

2

Nice note Dan, but do try slow-O on these old classics sometime! It takes longer, but there is a vitality preserved that is lost with the extra punch of O2 with decanting. I usually enlarge the surface area to at least half-dollar size for better breathing, if the bottle needs it. And of course a gently cool serving temperature is a must.

3

Suppose that it were simply audouzed, with the cork removed and the bottle left out on the countertop in the kitchen.

How many hours would you be talking?

Or is it too difficult to say - do you need to keep checking in on the bottle every 30 minutes or an hour?

Thanks.

4

My memory of trying the 74’ as part of a BV GDL vertical tasting was that it was clearly over the hill and had a similar experience on a 2nd try.

5

This was one of the first wines I ever owned, but its best days are far in the rear view mirror.

Bruce

6

Agreed. Bought a sealed case of this and I had about three bottles and sold the rest. It wasn’t bad, but it had seen better days. Sad as I was hoping for some type of awesome being a 74 with excellent storage history

7

The 1974 BV Cab was never a strong representative of this great vintage.
Boy, would I like to try a 74 Monte Bello right about now!!!

TTT

8

To me the best bv gdl’s of the 70s are the 70 (still holding up and if stored right can be stunning), 76 (haven’t had in a long time so can’t say how it’s doing currently) and the 78 (on a slow decline).

Would like to try a 68 & 69 someday as have heard still holding up.

9

Well I just did, and it was pretty nice. Not the best '74 I’ve had, but no slouch either. Paul, have you ever had the '74 Mayacamas? I’m sitting on one of these and think about when to drink it.

cheers,
scott

1974 Ridge Monte Bello - USA, California, San Francisco Bay, Santa Cruz Mountains (3/28/2014)
Purchased a few years back from Hi-Time, this bottle had a base neck fill and a pristine cork that came out easily with a screwpull. A nice ruby color with some bricking, this did not appear as youthful as a '75 Pontet Canet I had the other night. Red plum, forest floor, sandalwood and some “Draper perfume” on the nose. This shows similar flavors but with some blood orange notes also in the mix. Medium bodied with well resolved tannins, this showed its best with about an hour of aeration, and surprisingly the remaining 1/3 bottle was still holding up the next day. Nonetheless, I think this is at or past its peak, and was a very nice '74, but not as good as some others I’ve tried (Conn Creek and Mondavi Reserve are at the top of that list for now). (92 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

10

Had that Maya sometime during the 80s.
I would say pound away matey!

One of my favorite 1974 Cabs (And Merlot) came from Stags Leap.
Very fruit forward and luscious.
My father and I bought 5 cases and enjoyed them over a 15 yr period.

TTT

11

76 is probably the best BV right now from the 1970’s.
That 74 Mayacamas is something special. One of the best of the vintage. Phelps Insignia (the first vintage) is also great, but perhaps a bit past it now as well.

12

Has anyone had a Martha’s lately ?

13

Favre did. He enjoyed it greatly

14

Nathan,

I don’t have experience with really old wines, say those 50 - 100 years old, like Monsieur Audouze, but the “method” (of just pulling the cork and allowing the bottle to breathe without decanting) works extremely well for good wines that are only 20 - 40 years old! :slight_smile: The younger the wine, and the more body it has, the longer it takes to develop. Maybe Francois’s older bottles already have somewhat low fills (as he has mentioned sometimes, picking bottles out of the cellar that “need to be consumed” :slight_smile: ). But with the ones I deal with, an in-the-neck fill is not all that uncommon. So I take a small exploratory and education taste to enlarge the surface area a bit, which facilitates the very slow breathing process. How long depends on the wine. Two or three hours would be a good minimum, though if one is going to spend a couple hours consuming the wine, it will continue to develop nicely in the bottle after one starts with it, as the surace area increases, some agitation occurs, and the volume of wine being aerated decreases. With wines in this 20 -40 year old category, maybe 5 hours initially would be optimal. But again, it will depend on the wine. Some older Burgs that initially have seemed totally “shot” have resuscitated themselves amazingly with this slow-O approach. I am sold on it! Keep the wine at least gently cool though!

With bottles that have stirred up sediment, it is necessary to stand them up for a week or more, but with wines that have been lying down, if one is very careful, one can open and gently pour without troubling the sediment. I think a longish slow-O may further soften any tannins in the sediment, and besides, aging softens tannins naturally (as the molecules agglomerate (I think that’s the word - they combine into longer chain molecules which are not perceived as being as astringent). But passing such a bottle around, when one has a noisy crowd, allowing people to pour by themselves, may not be a good idea…

15

I’ve really thought the best Martha’s have come out of the 80’s

16

Turned out very nice - consumed along with several other fun '74s! You have some '74 Marathas Nico?

17

I’ve had 2 74 BV GdlT that were extreme disapppointments, and one that was a modest success. I was subsequently told that there was batch bottling, and that original lots were better. Not sure of that, was told in last couple of years. I’ve preferred 75 and 76

18

The acids were higher in 75 & 76 and it not unusual after a period they held up longer than the 74s. The 74 in the proper time frame were really delicious. [cheers.gif] [cheers.gif] [dance-clap.gif] [dance-clap.gif]

19

I’ve had some nice bottles of the '78, but that was awhile back. Have a couple left, should probably drink up.

20

Although the 74 Martha’s gets all the fame IMHO the 75 Martha’s is the better wine and the 78 Martha’s is no slouch. Just saying…