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| | Vintage | 2001 |  Label 1 of 446 
 | | Type | Red | | Producer | Robert Mondavi Winery (web) | | Variety | Cabernet Sauvignon | | Designation | Reserve | | Vineyard | n/a | | Country | USA | | Region | California | | SubRegion | Napa Valley | | Appellation | Napa Valley | | UPC Code(s) | 083085220105, 083085221058, 083085221232, 083085906092, 083085906160, 083085906283, 086003001565, 086003055001, 086003055018, 086003055025, 086003057012, 091882002039, 753604062010 |
| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 92.8 pts. and median of 93 pts. in 565 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by redz on 5/20/2024 & rated 92 points: This bottle seemed tight, even after 2 hrs decant. (153 views) | | | Tasted by Sanlucar on 3/23/2024 & rated 95 points: Dense, concentrated, deep and dark. It's profile is more Bordeaux-style rather than the typical Napa Cab. A blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and the rest Malbec and Petit Verdot; it's dominated by Cabernet Franc flavors of herbaceous tobacco with blackberry and black currant. Still a huge wine but the tannins remain under control. Tremendous finish (30 - 45 sec), this is a 30-year wine. It's in a great place right now but will last for several more years. (659 views) | | | Tasted by hargy on 1/6/2024 & rated 92 points: reticent nose, this was a little tired on opening and tasting a little lean and hollow after an hour or so, I thought it may have been an 'off' bottle - it filled dramatically after another hour and the last sip was undoubtedly the best - not sure but I'm inclined to leave my last few bottles for at least a couple of years (1125 views) | | | Tasted by hrazdiiv on 10/14/2023 & rated 94 points: I had this wine in 2020 and remarked that it could potentially score 95+ within five years. Well, I almost got there. We had it last night and it was still absolutely delicious but not quite a 95, which is what I consider the delineation between a very good wine and a globally elite bottle (and yes, I recognize this isn’t exactly nuclear precision). 5till exhibits a beautiful medium ruby red color. The nose is wonderful: I might have even guessed Bordeaux, with earthy, charcoal, forest floor elements present. But the palate brings you around to California, with dark red fruits framed by excellent sweet tannin. Still has room to go. Maybe 95 will happen! Drank decanted over three hours. (1775 views) | | | Tasted by Counselor Chris on 6/8/2023 flawed bottle: Opened a magnum to toast my beloved father the day after he passed away, since it was a wine he loved. Aaaaand it was corked. There may be some cosmic meaning there, but I can't really put my finger on it. I guess it's that corks suck as a wine closure (2256 views) | | | Tasted by CRL Stc on 5/19/2023 & rated 93 points: Beautiful wine. PnP and then drank over two hours, and then what was left the next day and it was still going strong. Cork in good shape. This bottle has more time if you can hold off. (2074 views) | | | Tasted by VAGenius on 5/15/2023 & rated 95 points: 1 hour decant. Nose of red cherries and red currants with earthy aromas and white pepper. Palate of black currant, red licorice and drier black raspberry fruit paired with cigar box and cedar. It flows smoothly into a finish of full-boded tannins, red fruit, gingerbread, and oak. Very balanced, with plenty of life ahead. Fnished ahead of the 2001 Rauzan-Segela we drank at the same time. (1754 views) | | | Tasted by WoodieBayArea on 4/9/2023: this was good but not up to the standard I have for this bottling (at least the bottling from the 70's thru the 90's)... a little lean and the acidity (which I generally love) was a tiny bit harsh... does this simply need another 5-7 years... not sure... hmmm... maybe an off bottle??... NR given my uncertainty on that but this would have been 90-91'ish if I had rated (1800 views) | | | Tasted by Cailles on 1/15/2023 & rated 95 points: No notes taken. From a double magnum. This showed great as it has already reached a good level of maturity. The baby fat is gone, the wine has fleshed out and what remains is an elegant, fine Napa Cab with a level of ripeness that is well in check, lots of earthy/herbal/mineral notes creating a good balance, all embedded in a fine structural frame. At least from large formats this should improve further over the next two+ decades. (2314 views) | | | Tasted by JB12 on 1/2/2023 & rated 95 points: Decanted 2 hr. Drinks really well. Wine continues to develop over the next few hours. Black cherry fruit flavors. (1421 views) | | | Tasted by pbenn001 on 12/26/2022 & rated 93 points: Opened and decanted for sediment at 1:30pm as this one threw off a good amount of sediment left behind in the bottle. Drank the last glass at 9pm and drank throughout the day and evening to check its progress. This one drank the best to me around the 4-5pm hour so that puts it at about a 2.5-3.5 hour decant to show its best.
On the nose, it was moderately tertiary from just about the get-go as I think this one is on its last legs and I wouldn't sit on it for more than perhaps a year or two. On the nose, I get scents of tar, graphite, leather, cedar, eucalyptus, and menthol. On the palate, lovely flavors of blackberries, chocolate, tobacco leaf, licorice, and minerals. Again, a lovely wine and wish I had another to lay down for just a little while longer. (1320 views) | | | Tasted by rinnocenzi on 11/28/2022 & rated 92 points: Drinking beautifully (1585 views) | | | Tasted by spendergast on 11/19/2022 & rated 95 points: Decanted 2 hrs. My last bottle and this wine has held up very well. Dense dark fruit with notes of cassis, cedar, plum, earth, spice. The tannins are soft and well integrated - long satisfying finish. I wish I had more. (1331 views) | | | Tasted by JS199 on 9/11/2022 & rated 96 points: Opened and consumed over 4 hours. Fully mature and ready with minimal air. Velvety mouthfeel with a Bordeaux like profile. Best part was the chocolate notes at the end. (1737 views) | | | Tasted by EC_Gray35 on 6/8/2022: Dinner in Bar, June 8th. Remainder went home. (1906 views) | | | Tasted by cbuhlman on 4/10/2022: dark garnet, slight bricking
lively and fresh for a 20 year old napa cab. packed with polished cab fruit with cassis, framed by gentle notes of cedar and leather with a touch of salinity, no soy notes though. I dare say perfect balance, with impressive length and finish.
94-95 (2251 views) | | | Tasted by gpcoleman on 4/1/2022 & rated 93 points: Wonderful, well balanced cab. (2098 views) | | | Tasted by devraj on 3/16/2022 & rated 94 points: Very youthful and saturated dark red color. Aromas of cassis, reddish black berries, cedar, hint of soil and graphite on the nose. A medium to full bodied palate shows velvety and sweet crushed dark berries, hint of cocoa, medium acidity, silky tannins and a very long cedar/pencil lead perfumed finish. This seems to be getting better with age! (2133 views) | | | Tasted by ipp on 2/14/2022 & rated 92 points: The 2001 is well aged. In my opinion, the 750ml is at its peak and will last 5+ at this top level. Soft, elegant and well balanced. I think the 1.5L have 10-15 years at this level before any drop off. (2120 views) | | | Tasted by RojoVino24 on 1/23/2022 & rated 94 points: Slow Ox to start for about an hour. Good amount of sediment . Cork was in great shape! Vibrant ruby color with purple rim. This was a velvet hammer! Baking spice, cassis, leather, dark fruits/plum. Violet and earth as well. Mild tannis on the back. Drinking great now but a few more years of age wouldn’t hurt either. Either way, you shouldn’t be disappointed. (1898 views) | | | Tasted by VAGenius on 1/6/2022 & rated 96 points: Nose of red currant, tobacco leaf, and cedar box. Classic palate of Napa earth and dust, cigar box, sweet red fruits, spice, and minerals. Smooth vanilla oak finish with black cherry, cigar ash, smoke, and hot asphalt. What a classic wine that's really singing now! (1799 views) | | | Tasted by JB12 on 12/19/2021 & rated 95 points: Really, really nice... cork broke, but likely due to a bad opener. Lots of sediment that was removed with a wine strainer thingee as I Decanted for an hour. Drank over the next hour with dinner. Long smoooooth finish. Berry flavors are there, not overwhelming. Some earthy tones in the background. Loved it. Not sure what happened with the other poor ratings. (1904 views) | | | Tasted by gamlingman on 12/15/2021 & rated 91 points: 20 years in the bottle and I'm wondering would have it been better earlier? Classic Mondavi with perfect balance of spice and fruits as the long rounded finish certainly shows this has aged well. Did expect a more powerfull finish, but perhaps we are mellowing a bit after 20 years. (1955 views) | | | Tasted by BernieMSY on 11/24/2021 & rated 94 points: Beautiful dark color,muted nose.
Richly fruit-laden flavor profile, deep and integrated (1803 views) | | | Tasted by vinko84 on 10/12/2021 & rated 94 points: Classic Mondavi (2124 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, Vintage Retrospective: The 2001 Napa Valley Cabernets (Jun 2020) (6/1/2020)
(Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve To Kalon Vineyard Napa Valley Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, Vertical Tastings of Mondavi’s Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve and I Block To Kalon Vineyard Fumé Blanc (May 2016) (5/1/2016)
(Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve Napa Valley) Subscribe to see review text. | By John Gilman
View From the Cellar, Sep/Oct 2012, Issue #41, Robert Mondavi’s Superb Run of Cabernet Sauvignon
(Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve) Login and sign up and see review text. | The World of Fine Wine, March 2011, Issue #31
(Robert Mondavi Cabernet Reserve) Login and sign up and see review text. | The World of Fine Wine, March 2011, Issue #31
(Robert Mondavi To Kalon Cabernet Reserve) Login and sign up and see review text. | By Jancis Robinson, MW
JancisRobinson.com (6/29/2009)
(Robert Mondavi, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By Jancis Robinson, MW
JancisRobinson.com (6/29/2009)
(Robert Mondavi, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By John Gilman
View From the Cellar, Mar/Apr 2009, Issue #20, The Golden Age of California Cabernet Sauvignon- Part Three
(Robert Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve) Login and sign up and see review text. | By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, May/June 2003, IWC Issue #108
(Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon To-Kalon Vineyard) Subscribe to see review text. | By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, May/June 2003, IWC Issue #108
(Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous and View From the Cellar and The World of Fine Wine and JancisRobinson.com. (manage subscription channels) |
| Robert Mondavi Winery Producer website
Producer website2001 Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon ReserveWINEMAKER’S NOTES
(Back of bottle: "I love this wine's intense dark fruit character with mineral, violet and earthy truffle complexity. The muscular tannins are beautifully integrated, imparting both elegance and ageability. The grapes come from our finest vineyards on the Oakville bench surrounding our winery, and the wine was gently handcrafted in our new gravity-flow fermentation cellar. Aging in new French oak chateau barrels wove oak spices and a sensation on f the plushest velvet through the lingering flavors." Tim Mondavi, Winegrower.)
Deep, intense dark fruit character, with mineral, violet and earthy truffle complexity, distinguishes our 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve. The wine is powerful yet elegant, with beautifully integrated firm, muscular tannins, promising long aging potential. Selected from our finest vineyards, our Napa Valley Reserve captures the complex flavor profile and exquisite balance of the Oakville bench region. The wine was handcrafted in our new To Kalon Fermentation Cellar with traditional techniques, including hand-sorting of the clusters, gravity-flow movement of the must and wine, and fermentation in a traditional oak tank. Sixteen months of aging in new French oak château barrels added vanilla and toasty oak accents. To retain fully this wine’s enormous depth, texture and length of finish, we bottled it without fining or filtration and captured the wine’s rich, seductive character. Firm, integrated tannins for aging, persistent finish. Powerful, yet extremely elegant.
Varietal blend: 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, 1% Malbec, 1% Petit Verdot
VINTAGE
The 2001 growing season experienced one of the longest bloom-to-harvest periods in recent history. Long hang-time on the vine (averaging 140 days) resulted in exceptional flavors in Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. Cumulative degree days were high (~3254) because of the warm spring. Rainfall in Oakville was below-average at 25½”. The average date for budbreak was March 30; for bloom May 19; and for veraison July 23. After one of the earliest onsets of harvest in the last 20 years (August 8), the weather changed and harvest became one of the longest in duration, with the last grapes picked at the end of October. We had predicted an early harvest since budbreak, bloom and veraison were ahead of normal. Brix levels (sugars) rose very quickly in the Cabernet Sauvignon grapes to the mid-20s two weeks before a normal harvest date. We waited for the flavors to fully mature and for the tannins to soften before harvesting the grapes for this wine between October 2 and 16.
Grapes: (Average) 24.9º Brix with 0.69% initial acid and 3.74 pH
VINEYARDS
Certain vineyards, because of outstanding clones, soils, exposure, mesoclimates and cultivation techniques, yield grapes rich in varietal character with impeccable balance. These sites consistently produce the most expressive and complex wines with great structure and aging potential. For our 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, we selected 98% of the grapes from the well-draining bench lands of the Oakville AVA (American Viticultural Area), with 50% grown in the Robert Mondavi To Kalon Vineyard. We selected balance from Robert Mondavi Wappo Hill Vineyard in the Stags Leap District AVA.
Grape Sourcing: 98% Oakville AVA, 2% Stags Leap District AVA
FERMENTATION AND AGING
We hand-harvested the fruit into small 40 lb. boxes and then hand-sorted it on tables in our To Kalon Fermentation Cellar for optimum quality. The clusters were gently de-stemmed directly into one of our new, 17-ton oak fermenting tanks. This technique eliminates pumping of the must and possible extraction of harsh tannins from the seeds. We fermented the wine with half native and half cultured yeast for layers of complexity. In the oak tank, we were able to maintain the warmth of fermentation throughout the 32-day period of extended skin contact, in an environment of controlled oxygen contact, resulting in a concentrated wine with refined, supple tannins. After the maceration period, the free-run wine was drained off the pomace and the drop gate was opened to gravity-convey the pomace to a wooden Marzola basket press. The wine was aged in traditional willow-hoop French oak barrels (100% new oak) for 16 months. During aging, we gently clarified the wine with barrel-to-barrel rackings. The wine was bottled without fining or filtration.
Wine analysis: 0.60% total acid, 3.76 pH, 0.08% residual sugar, and 14.6% alcohol, by volumeCabernet SauvignonCabernet Sauvignon is probably the most famous red wine grape variety on Earth. It is rivaled in this regard only by its Bordeaux stablemate Merlot, and its opposite number in Burgundy, Pinot Noir. From its origins in Bordeaux, Cabernet has successfully spread to almost every winegrowing country in the world. It is now the key grape variety in many first-rate New World wine regions, most notably Napa Valley, Coonawarra and Maipo Valley. Wherever they come from, Cabernet Sauvignon wines always seem to demonstrate a handful of common character traits: deep color, good tannin structure, moderate acidity and aromas of blackcurrant, tomato leaf, dark spices and cedarwood.
Used as frequently in blends as in varietal wines, Cabernet Sauvignon has a large number of common blending partners. Apart from the obvious Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the most prevalent of these are Malbec, Petit Verdot and Carmenere (the ingredients of a classic Bordeaux Blend), Shiraz (in Australia's favorite blend) and in Spain and South America, a Cabernet – Tempranillo blend is now commonplace. Even the bold Tannat-based wines of Madiran are now generally softened with Cabernet SauvignonReserve The Wine News | Wine Country This Week | Wine Lover's PageUSAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Napa Valley Napa Valley Wineries and Wine (Napa Valley Vintners)Napa ValleySt. Helena |
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