What's the oldest California Pinot Noir you've ever had?

i have had both Mondavi and Swan from the 70’s without any wow factor for me. think i have had a Calera or three as well while down in Florida as my buds there roll deep with Calera.

I think you’re right - it was Wes’s Gemello that was the '68
Must have been '66 - I’m sure I’d have remembered if it was a '64 (birth year)

I attended a Hanzell tasting in which we had the following bottles; 66,70,71,74,78,79,80 and 81. On another occasion I had a 68 Hanzell, which I found to blow all the others away. Had a few old BV’s and Mt Eden’s as well but all were pretty tired.

'77 Mondavi PR. Disappointing. They did much better with cabernet than pinot in the '70s/'80s.

Sweet avatar, Clayton! [thumbs-up.gif]

The oldest I’ve had are '46 and '47 BV Pinot Noir (although I have heard various arguments that the grapes may or may not have actually been Pinot Noir) and '46 and '47 Charles Krug “Burgundy.” All were quite alive and excellent tasting experiences. The '46 BV was the pick of the litter.

Have quite a few vintages of '60-'74 BV and Hanzell Pinot and hoping to do a dinner with them all some time soon.

Cheers!

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PS: '69 is my birth year, so I’ve tried a disproportionate number of bottles from that vintage. While I haven’t had the Inglenook you’re asking about, none of the 1969 California Pinot I’ve tried has had much life in it…I suspect it just wasn’t a vintage destined to last as long as the '68 or similar vintages.

Hope it works out well though!

I had a 69 BV a few months ago and it was completely dead even though the bottle and cork were perfect.

The oldest I’ve had was this past month and it was past its prime. 1971 BV Pinot Noir. Prunes and figs on the nose right when the cork came out and then disintegrated from there very quickly. Not drinkable, unfortunately.

I had a 74 Mt Eden about four years ago that was easily one of the best wines I have ever had. The youthfulness of the wine was stunning.

Michael Alberty beat me to it. I hosted a vertical of both Hanzell Chards and Pinots a few years ago that was worthy enough that the winemaker flew up for it. He brought the 1965 Pinot which was my WOTN, not due to its age but because it was simply the best from dozens of vintages that were on the table that night. From the color to the finish of that bottle … amazing experience. Hanzell is fantastic juice, both red and white.

68 BV a few years ago, was still nice.
Still have some late 70’s and early 80’s Calera, Robert Stemmler, and BV. Oldest one I still have is a 69 Inglenook Cask B-15

Thanks brotha!

Stuff from the '60s. Nothing to get excited about. Now burgundies at the same age and older that I’ve had have been freaking remarkable.

Checked this morning and it was a 1966. A.P. Stumps had a 1911 Paul Masson in their cellar, wonder what happened to it.

I’d love to try something from the 60’s or 70’s but the oldest for me were an '85 Mt Eden three years ago that was quite pleasant but not outstanding and an '85 Chalone Reserve this past May that was just fantastic and had years left to go.

-Michael

Similar experience with the same bottle of wine, around the same time frame. The 1975 Mondavi Napa Valley Pinot Noir was interesting to taste and talk about, but I’m not looking for any to purchase, regardless of price. I do remember though; when the bottle was initially opened everyone hurried to taste it, for fear that it would quickly fall apart. I took the open bottle home (around 1/3rd of a bottle left). And, when I revisited it the next evening, I thought that it improved slightly.

Last year a friend shared a 1988 Calera Jensen Vineyard Pinot. And, while we frequently like a lot of the same wines, we were definitely not on the same wavelength in regards to this bottle… I just couldn’t get into it and appreciate it like he seemed to.

Back in 2007 I tasted a number of Pinots (different makers, but all fruit was sourced from Bien Nacido Vineyards), vintages ranging from the early 1990s to present. It seemed like the mid-90s (e.g. 1995 or 1996) and newer showed much better than the early-1990s, at least in regards to my palate. I would relish the opportunity to taste that same line-up again today, as my palate has changed significantly in the past 18 to 24 months.

'68 Heitz and BV “Special Burgundy,” both within the last year, both excellent. Inglenook post-1968 is more hit and miss, though.

That was the '66 Martin Ray that Paul Romero poured for us. Weren’t you at Cronin I? The '70 Martin Ray had lost its fruit and seemed a bit hollow on it’s own, but with its structure and character, it was still amazing with food.

I’ve had the '80 & '81 Cronin Ventanas many times, always at its prime. From the '80s, I’ve had most Mount Edens, some SCMVs and a Calera, and they’re all doing fine.

Michael, the '85 SCMV is a bit like that, too. Dense, dark, simple. Jeffrey Patterson noted his best Pinots tend to come from bad Cab years.

1911 Paul Masson? I WANT I WANT I WANT I NEED! GIBBIT GIBBIT GIBBIT! GIBBIT TO MEEEEE!

I was at Cronin one and had the 1970.

The Masson was down in the old cellar, you just had to ask to go down. The original cask storage was still down there behind a curtain. It looked kind of like a ruin actually with stuff kind of flung around.