October 14, 2010 - Les Degustateurs 1982 New World vs Old World (Custom House Tavern, Chicago, IL): #1 wine of the evening. Score was 18.25 out of 20
April 12, 2010 - I can't believe how this wine has held its ground over the years; it has been well taken care of and the bottle still had fill into the neck, so I was hopeful that it was still good. Being somewhat cautious I opened and poured about a quarter of a glass; to my relief this wine was a beauty. Little if any fruit tastes left, but it was dark, complex, and a full mouth feel. The color may have evolved some, but it was still dark with no orange edge at all. Went ahead and filled the glass and then shut the bottle and "vacuumed" it until we were ready for another glass. After about 2 1/2 hours of doing this, the wine was still all there. What a great bottle of wine. I don't believe it could get better, but while it has evolved for sure, I believe it could have 2-3 more years before it starts to see the backside of its life.
April 5, 2007 - Grace Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Vertical (1981-1989) OL (Twist Bistro, Campbell, California): Mature, beefy, mushroom Cab nose; great mature Cab, with tart black fruit, mushroom; medium-plus finish 93+ pts.
December 15, 2005 - Single-Blind Napa Valley Cult Wines (Tribeca Grill): Soft chocolatey nose also showing some spearment and alcohol. Somewhat evolved on the palate, and while obviously the mellowest wine of the night, I'm not sure it aged entirely gracefully, as it were; it comes across dry and acidic with a metallic inflection as well as some "goutte de merde." The fruit was still surprisingly youthful given its age.
October 5, 1990 - Grace Cabernet Sauvignon (Walnut Creek, Ca.): Tasting of 7 Grace Family Cabernet Sauvignons. The same Grace label as the earlier vintages, nose of rich fruit, coupled with much younger bottle bouquet compared to the older vintages, tasted like rich, black cherries, well balanced and structured with good acid and soft tannins coated the mouth, suggesting ageing of 5 more years. My #3 tied.