A really nice bright red fruited wine with spice, cigar tobacco, mint and some almond notes. Started with a bit of the BV "sherry" note, typical of these older bottles, but really cleaned up and came together into an elegant mature wine. Palate offering plum skin, cherry, mint and clove as this came together in glass.
Lighter bodied, high acidity, and slightly fragile fruit at this point. However it provides a nice historic reference point for the wines made by Andre in the early days of Napa's renaissance.
Cork came apart, but we were fortunate and were able to extract it. Ruby color with clearness on the edge. Very fine sediment in the last couple ounces, stood it upright a week in advance. Once open, I decanted and proceeded immediately to the first glass. Acidity and structure holding up very well. I was not expecting it to be so vibrant. Redwood, mint, thyme were initially most prominent with red fruits in the deep in the background. The fruit was more prominent in the second glass presenting red plum, pomegranate and a bit of cherry with the thyme and redwood in balance with the fruit. The fruit very bright front and center on the last glass. It still has years of life ahead of it, but this is my last bottle. Really remarkable.
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This was at Bern’s and this bottle was obviously perfectly stored over the last 50 years. The cork was in great condition and the color was dark and youthful ruby. Still plenty of fruit left and also some wonderful tertiary flavors that I can’t describe. We were disappointed that this was the last bottle.
brought this to a restaurant and let the Somm have a glass as well. The cork took a bit of patience to get out but it relented in one piece. We decanted and filtered out the sediment. On first glance the wine was very dark which worried me even more. To the nose it smelled of a refined funky molasses. My initial tasting was quite surprising as it brought hints of cherry and pomegranate. If it weren't so smooth and complex I would say it was young as it exhibited a vibrancy that I haven't tasted in older Cabs before. (Although I'm no expert so this may be common) The finish carried the vibrancy for some time sort of dancing on my palate. I was shocked at how good this is given that this was a 48 year old standard bottling and the Somm commented to me how floored he was that not only was the bottle still good but that it was this good.
This gives me much hope for the other bottles I have.
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Very surprised how well it drank. Great fruit on the nose. Plenty of red fruit, Lots of mint and some eucalyptus on the pallet. Nice med long finish. Drinking strong after 4 hours.
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Needed a few hours to really open up, but not too bad PNP. Rich black fruits on the nose, hint of dried raisins and provincial herbs. Picked up a tremendous amount of weight on the palate, brighter fruits with red cherry predominate supported by moderate measures of blackberry, pomegranate, unctuous cranberry and a slight herbal note. Shockingly good, I was not expecting this.."..
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Drank alongside the 68, both from the same auction lot. The fill and cork on the 68 were a little better, and IIRC 68 is considered the better vintage, but I think I actually preferred the 69. Both are very mature and quite similar to each other (as might be expected), but have not dried out, with a little mint/pyrazine, a lot of cedar, some dried fruit character, a little ashy cigar, and resolved tannins. I thought the 69 was just slightly fresher. Both made for pleasant drinking if you like this sort of very old wine. I was just happy both bottles were drinkable. Impressive for non-reserve bottlings at this age.
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- Crimsom color - Purchased at auction for $45. I figured it would be worth it for novelty value alone. Decanted to remove sediment, but there's not as much as I'd expect from a wine this old.
Some browning around the edges, but quite a bit of color remains. Lots of wood (oak and cedar) on the nose, with a very Port-like aroma. The wood is also dominant on the palate, although the fruit does poke through a bit. The fruit becomes more prominent with some air. There are still some pretty solid tannins present. The finish is really long. Although this wine is clearly past its prime, it still has some life left.
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Decanted, tasted over 3 hrs -browning, dried blood, clear rim -cedar, burnt caramel -somewhat oxidized notes, caramel, no remaining fruit but a slight sweetness, soft texture -definitely past its prime but still provides some enjoyment
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Tasting Group Dinner - West Coast Cabernet (Dave McMahon's House, Minneapolis): A freebie bottle courtesy of a local retailer. Certainly questionable provenance/storage conditions over the years. Medium brick in color with a clear rim. The nose holds faint promise, revealing some medium cherry fruit and dried herbs, but quickly turns funky and nasty. Riddled with VA/Band-Aid smells and flavors, this is sherried, dilute, and cheesy. Badly over-the-hill.
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3/4/2024 - RockinCabs wrote: 91 Points
A really nice bright red fruited wine with spice, cigar tobacco, mint and some almond notes. Started with a bit of the BV "sherry" note, typical of these older bottles, but really cleaned up and came together into an elegant mature wine. Palate offering plum skin, cherry, mint and clove as this came together in glass.
Lighter bodied, high acidity, and slightly fragile fruit at this point. However it provides a nice historic reference point for the wines made by Andre in the early days of Napa's renaissance.
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3/6/2021 - derrington Likes this wine: 94 Points
Cork came apart, but we were fortunate and were able to extract it. Ruby color with clearness on the edge. Very fine sediment in the last couple ounces, stood it upright a week in advance. Once open, I decanted and proceeded immediately to the first glass. Acidity and structure holding up very well. I was not expecting it to be so vibrant. Redwood, mint, thyme were initially most prominent with red fruits in the deep in the background. The fruit was more prominent in the second glass presenting red plum, pomegranate and a bit of cherry with the thyme and redwood in balance with the fruit. The fruit very bright front and center on the last glass. It still has years of life ahead of it, but this is my last bottle. Really remarkable.
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10/30/2019 - salcorn wrote: 92 Points
Still decent fruit, redwood, forest floor. Holding up fairly well.
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2/19/2019 - Decanting Queen Likes this wine: 92 Points
This was at Bern’s and this bottle was obviously perfectly stored over the last 50 years. The cork was in great condition and the color was dark and youthful ruby. Still plenty of fruit left and also some wonderful tertiary flavors that I can’t describe. We were disappointed that this was the last bottle.
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3/3/2017 - yerrbo wrote: 92 Points
brought this to a restaurant and let the Somm have a glass as well. The cork took a bit of patience to get out but it relented in one piece. We decanted and filtered out the sediment. On first glance the wine was very dark which worried me even more. To the nose it smelled of a refined funky molasses. My initial tasting was quite surprising as it brought hints of cherry and pomegranate. If it weren't so smooth and complex I would say it was young as it exhibited a vibrancy that I haven't tasted in older Cabs before. (Although I'm no expert so this may be common) The finish carried the vibrancy for some time sort of dancing on my palate. I was shocked at how good this is given that this was a 48 year old standard bottling and the Somm commented to me how floored he was that not only was the bottle still good but that it was this good.
This gives me much hope for the other bottles I have.
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10/1/2016 - jsteach Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very surprised how well it drank. Great fruit on the nose. Plenty of red fruit, Lots of mint and some eucalyptus on the pallet. Nice med long finish. Drinking strong after 4 hours.
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2/18/2015 - Bill Bucklew wrote: 90 Points
Needed a few hours to really open up, but not too bad PNP. Rich black fruits on the nose, hint of dried raisins and provincial herbs. Picked up a tremendous amount of weight on the palate, brighter fruits with red cherry predominate supported by moderate measures of blackberry, pomegranate, unctuous cranberry and a slight herbal note. Shockingly good, I was not expecting this.."..
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2/18/2015 - coremill wrote: 88 Points
Drank alongside the 68, both from the same auction lot. The fill and cork on the 68 were a little better, and IIRC 68 is considered the better vintage, but I think I actually preferred the 69. Both are very mature and quite similar to each other (as might be expected), but have not dried out, with a little mint/pyrazine, a lot of cedar, some dried fruit character, a little ashy cigar, and resolved tannins. I thought the 69 was just slightly fresher. Both made for pleasant drinking if you like this sort of very old wine. I was just happy both bottles were drinkable. Impressive for non-reserve bottlings at this age.
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4/13/2014 - kkleg wrote: 85 Points
- Crimsom color - Purchased at auction for $45. I figured it would be worth it for novelty value alone. Decanted to remove sediment, but there's not as much as I'd expect from a wine this old.
Some browning around the edges, but quite a bit of color remains. Lots of wood (oak and cedar) on the nose, with a very Port-like aroma. The wood is also dominant on the palate, although the fruit does poke through a bit. The fruit becomes more prominent with some air. There are still some pretty solid tannins present. The finish is really long. Although this wine is clearly past its prime, it still has some life left.
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4/16/2013 - Cote d'Or wrote:
Decanted, tasted over 3 hrs
-browning, dried blood, clear rim
-cedar, burnt caramel
-somewhat oxidized notes, caramel, no remaining fruit but a slight sweetness, soft texture
-definitely past its prime but still provides some enjoyment
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5/10/2009 - salcorn wrote: 90 Points
Predominant wood nose, good color, still some fruit, characteristic old BV cab nose with cherry, dust
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2/7/2009 - Siggy wrote: 55 Points
Tasting Group Dinner - West Coast Cabernet (Dave McMahon's House, Minneapolis): A freebie bottle courtesy of a local retailer. Certainly questionable provenance/storage conditions over the years. Medium brick in color with a clear rim. The nose holds faint promise, revealing some medium cherry fruit and dried herbs, but quickly turns funky and nasty. Riddled with VA/Band-Aid smells and flavors, this is sherried, dilute, and cheesy. Badly over-the-hill.
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