I’m going from memory, 3 days later, so my details will be slight.
At some friends’ house for Valentines Day, where I brought the '98 Coutier Clos d’Ambonnay, I was given the option of choosing one of the older cabs my buddy recently procured from a Wine Berserker here on the forum. I chose Silver Oak (1984) Bonny’s Vineyard for two reasons: 1) my experience with Silver Oak was very poor, tasting the '04 or '05 vintages and dumping them almost instantly, and recalling that they got their reputation early so this might be a vastly different type of wine, and 2) recent news about the ‘re-opening’ of Bonny’s Vineyard had intrigued me.
I had him open it an hour or so before dinner, just to get the mustiness blown off a bit. I poured a small sampler, less than an ounce, and loved the orange hue to the wine. As the oxygen came back into the wine, it went back to a reddish color (brick red, light edges) but still had just a tinge of the orange hue as well.
Typical mature CA cab nose of cigar box, dark sweet fruits, tobacco, and a nice bit of brett. It was actually quite similar to some older Bordeaux that I’ve had within the last year, which was a nice treat for me. I also feel this is the chance for me to break my friend into Bordeaux, as he has been hesitant, and since he enjoyed this wine so much, I think the door is open, and now he will reach the point of no return.
Beautiful richness on the palate, silky, ripe tannins, notes of cocoa, tobacco, black cherries, saddle leather. As I have found with the few good old wines I’ve had, the midpalate is always enjoyable, and this one did not disappoint. When the structure and flavor profile continue on through the midpalate to the finish, it makes for a great overall wine experience, and sets it apart from other wines enjoyed. The finish was baked fruits, and more of that ‘old CA cab’ character, best executed in the nose.
I certainly wasn’t disappointed.