TN: 1982 Freemark Abbey Cabernet Sauvignon Bosché Vineyard

Purchased 2 weeks back from LastBottle.com for $15 per. yes, $15 per. I figured, hey, I wasted more on bad appetizers and scratch-off lottery cards. Why should this be any different? I just scratch (pop) and see what I got…

  • 1982 Freemark Abbey Cabernet Sauvignon Bosché Vineyard - USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford (1/12/2012)
    Purchased as an experiment. This one turned out well.
    Nose of old damp cedar. Color is very much alive; garnet-red with hints of crimson on the edges. Maybe some brown on the very edge- maybe. Palate shows some red fruits of bing cherries and red raspberries. Hints of forest floor, old leather and soy. I was actually shocked how well this drank. The nose did not promise much but it did deliver nonetheless. After about 30 minutes this was crescendo-ing to the fullest it would ever be again in this world (or any other). A light weight mouthfeel with some elegance and poise. Not being one for ‘old’ wines, I can report: This did not suck. (90 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

Mike… what was the alcohol percentage on this puppy?

13.6%

Not surprised this drank well, but it all depends on provenance I guess. I’m trying to remember how good a vintage '82 was, in general, and my recollection is that it was at least decent.

Mike, no signs of oxidation? Tasted the 82 Freemark Abbey Bosche at about 10 years old, and do not recall it then being anything special at the time (purchased direct from Freemark Abbey). Yours sounds considerably better. Can’t say I have tasted a lot of great 1982 California Cabernet, including a disappointing 1982 Montelena.

Nick, I am sure there was signs of oxidation. I usually just term is as an ‘old wine quality’. This showed as it did more for what it wasn’t which was old, totally over the hill and udrinkable, even with the bottle notes of badly oxidized capsules furnished by Lastbottle as a caveat, hence the $15.

It did well as a $15 old cab. [cheers.gif]

1982 was not so great but certainly you don’t have much to lose at $15. Nice find, Mike! I missed that one.

Brent, I will give you one next time we meet.