I don’t think these wines broke above $20/btl when I lived in Pensacola. I paid $40/btl for this case, got the wood box too.
All the bottles in this kind of shape I’ll be very happy.
I had a couple of bottles of the 96 Estate and thought it was pretty good. Based on that and the strength of the 1997 vintage, I bought 2 6 packs. The wine never showed any fruit. I understand that they were having TCA issues about that time.
The maiden vintage for Gallo Estate bottle ( or Northern Sonoma ) was, I believe, 1990.
I drank a lot of this back in the day as well. It really was an excellent wine. Nice to hear it made old bones.
OWC…
I still have 2-3 more of these, and like some of the others drank a lot of it back in the day. I actually figured it for having a decent aging potential so saved a few. even more interesting will be the couple of the lower tier Gallo 94 (not even the singel vineyard) that I have. I remember getting the estate for about $33-35.
I probably have a case of mixed 94/95 singel veneyard Frei Ranch and Barelli Creek? The 94 Frei was my biggest purchase in that year as I was able to find it for $13. As Tom reports above it has not aged particularly well. There’s some bottle variation with some displying that hot mess he describes. The Frei was better back in the day, but the Barrelli aged a little better. I also stocked a way a bunch of the early 90s Hess Collection, with maybe 15 left. Those have aged better than the Gallo single vineyards but are hit and miss too. 91 Hess Collection was really the first non-bubbly wine that I drank on a regular basis.
Yes - those were the good old days. I bought lots of Gallo reds (solid QPR for Calif red in Quebec,Canada )from vintage 1990 to vintge 1998. I enjoyed all of them and the best was 1993 Gallo Northern Sonoma Merlot. ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
Opened bottle # 3 from this case, best yet. All Mark wrote about above with a real elegance. Only a medium finish that is mostly tannin keeps this from being absolutely upper shelf.
Bottle had been upright a few months as I planned this for some friends visiting, but we never got this one uncorked that visit.
I loved these in various vintages during the era they were produced. Definitely a touch above their single vineyard stuff. Only a few thousand cases made during that era, and I’m not sure what distribution model they followed since finding them was spotty. Saw them at some steakhouses.
Sadly, tracked some 1991 at auction once, and then upon getting it delivered, opened the box to find it was the $8 fighting varietal in the box, rather than the estate cab. (Auction house refunded our money and told us to enjoy the wine for free – which was zonked)
I wish Gina and her team had kept up this effort. Never heard why they gave up.
Thanks for sharing the note.
When I just logged in, I saw I had posted on this thread and went back to see what THAT was all about. Now I see. I have since been informed that that fruit no longer goes to Gallo - it goes to Sequoia Grove. It is not like it matters to me, except when they send their newest intern out to sample, and I see that person head into my vineyard with a white sampling bucket! Recent years I have taken to putting up caution tape to alert the unknowing.
My note on the 1999, at a time when I was a bit stingier on points. 1994 was a better year. I saved one and I think I’ll let it go to 20 years as a curiosity.
-
1999 Gallo Family Vineyards / Gallo of Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon Barrelli Creek Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Alexander Valley (10/11/2008)
I picked this up a few years ago because I planned to give it to someone blind and then reveal a Gallo wine. Never got around to it so I opened it tonight with a beef stew. This wine is OK and drinkable, moderately pleasant. Nose is moderate and non-descript but no negatives. Oak is gone. Moderate fruit on the palate with even a tiny bit of chocolate. There’s a sweetness on the palate that might be softened tanins. Color is very dark. Overall, this wine is drinkable, well made and good to very good but nothing to seek out. (86 pts.)
Posted from CellarTracker
Note that the 1999 says Barelli Creek Vineyard. Do not know if that is the source of the 1994.
I assume their northern Sonoma was the ranch off dry creek out of healdsburg right? At one time they were going to put a tasting room there but ended up on the square
I had the 97 Gallo ‘Estate’ [Sonoma] over the weekend. It had held up well, showing a bouquet of caramel and tobacco. Mature at the edges, and a little bit of a figgy finish. Compared to the other Estate bottlings from that era, I thought they drank better when younger, maybe best ages 10-15. 20 years is a long time to expect from a wine, so unless an estate has that track record, maybe being the test case isn’t so great. One thing to note - the amount of sedimentation in the bottle was astounding. We were at a restaurant and didn’t decant it – the final inch of the bottle was basically undrinkable with precipitates.
I thought these were like $40ish on release? Sticker on my bottle said $63, but I picked it up aftermarket.
I have a '95 Frei Ranch that may still be alive. I should stand it up someday soon.
If it’s “Estate Bottled”, I’m thinking it must be processed (at least) at their facility on Dry Creek Rd, Healdsburg.
They were great values 20 years ago, even with pricing here in Alberta.
Don’t hold up too much hope. I had a lot of 95/96/97 Frei and Barrelli. I think I still have 6-7. i’ve tried 3-4 over the past couple of years and they have not been very enjoyable.
They turned into alcoholic, VA-plagued, purple precipitate.
