High fill. Perfect cork. Decanted. Full color. Medium plus acidity. Substantial but well evolved tannins. Complex flavor with a slightly bitter finish. Excellent to outstanding mature Cabernet, that for my taste was already past peak. 93-94
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This was just a bit behind both the Gravelly Meadow and Volcanic Hill, at least on this occasion. Very sleek and refined with a silky, aged texture but a bit more muted with less fruit than the others. Still a very fine aged Cabernet and it came on in the glass but never reached the heights of the other two. I gave a 97 to the bottle I drank 3 years ago.
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1978 Diamond Creek and Monte Bello (MP Taverna, Irvington, NY): takes awhile to open up, but then shows beautiful fruit and more of the classic cab tertiary flavors. Loads of cassis, leather, brilliant long lingering finish. Does have a small iodine note, but it plays very well. Pales compared to VH and GM, but a fine wine.
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Deep, dark garnet in color with ever-so-slight bricking & clearing at the edges. Full, fragrant & attractive nose of ripe fruit aromas of dark cherries, blackberries & plums with overtones of floral, eucalyptus & earthy/dusty notes, tobacco, leather, spices, mint, minerals, some mocha, smoky & a hint of cedar in the background. Full bodied with a very good concentration of well balanced & smooth textured, ripe fruit flavors of dark cherries, blackberries & plums with spices, herbs, minerals, cocoa. mushrooms & earthy. Long lingering & supple finish. Drinks quite well at present but is most likely at its peak of development at 40 years of age. While I do not detect it descending in its development, I doubt any further development would occur. Cork was clean & intact; fill was in the mid portion of the neck. A wonderful example of great, aged California Cabernet.
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Another extraordinary wine from the golden age of California Cabernet. Incredible nose of eucalyptus and dark raspberry. Great acidity and freshness on the palate with fabulous flavors of dark raspberry, smoky cedar and eucalyptus and the texture just oozes classic Cabernet silkiness and power. Just a stunningly complex and taut finish with notes of spices and minerals. Makes it very clear how many decades have since been lost in Napa and California to sugar syrup.
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This is what great, aged, California Cabernet is all about. Powerful concentrated, rich, complex and loaded with ripe, juicy, Cabernet Sauvignon, cedar, tobacco and spice. The wine has depth, length and complexity and it's young and fresh!
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Diamond Creek Rare Wine Dinner (Charlie Palmer Steak): Red and black fruit on the nose with minty and menthol notes. The palate is so rich and vibrant, amazing that this is 38 years old. Good wine to drink right now. Superior to both the ’78 Gravelly Meadow and Volcanic Hill.
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1978 Big Boys + friends (Riverpark, NYC): Firing on all cylinders. Leaps out of the glass with redcurrant, mint, honey, and a really distinctive Sierra Mist smell. Very fresh and lively with a light-framed body, refreshing acidity, an almost frizzante texture. Makes me envision a bumblebee buzzing around just-bloomed flowers in a spring meadow.
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1978s + others at Riverpark: Explosive, sweet ripe black fruit on the nose, blackberries and plums. The fruit is sweet and fresh and leaps from the glass, and in the mouth the fruit is rich and lush and concentrated. But for a wine of this caliber, it's a bit one-note -- there's nothing like the complexity of the LMHB next to it -- and the tannins are just a touch rough around the edges and unrefined. I preferred the LMHB.
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1978 Diamond Creek Red Rock Terrace offered earth, smoke, caramel, blackberry and tobacco scents led to a structured, powerful, full bodied Cabernet Sauvignon with a fresh, ripe, long finish.
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Cork in good shape, the wine was decanted off sediment, and tasted immediately. This 34 (!) year old wine is at the end of plateau but it was great. Garnet with brick rim, this has cassis, berries, eucalyptus, spice, stone, and some wood notes, all lingering nicely ~45 seconds. A really nice texture and resolved tannins. I liked the '78 VH a lot better at 20 yrs old, but that's apples and oranges....
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Various Vintage California Wine Dinner - Corkbuzz in NYC (Corkbuzz - NYC): Drank this along side the 1981 Diamond Creek Volcanic Hill and this one had much richer stewed fruit with a richer tannin structure. Excellent cedar, boxed wood, tobacco, leather, all spice w/ that bordeaux aged light weight and lavender. Stewed cherry and strawberry which shows maybe fruit probably dying a little in this wine. would drink now if not already a little missed on this. Paired w/ filet of beef au jus and parsnip puree.
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Red Rock Terrace Cassis, stone, earth, blackberry, truffle and tobacco get you interested in a powerful full bodied, concentrated wine that served blind, would fool any taster into thinking it was an upper level Pauillac from a good vintage.
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Blind tasting of four 1978 Cabernet Sauvignons. First place. Nice inky nose of black cherry fruit with hints of saddle leather and cedar, more of the same on the palate, very supple and rich tasting, tannins fully resolved, nice medium/long finish with hints of leather and cedar on the aftertaste.
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Edward Roberts Pre-Auction Tasting (Columbia Yacht Club): Ruby color, turning brown toward the rim. Aromas of tar, gravel and black currants. Decent fruit remaining on the palate, but it turns acidic on the finish. I revisited this toward the end of the tasting, about an hour after my initial note. It's added an earthy note, along with cedar, floral and red fruit tones. The overly acidic quality to the finish is gone, and what's left is very enjoyable.
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Pre Auction Wine Tasting w/ lots of Burgs (NYC): What a wine. Still going strong for a California wine. Gravel, earth, but still a good amount of fruit. Killer finish. A wow wine. It not only survived, it shined!
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3/5/2022 - racerchris Likes this wine: 93 Points
High fill. Perfect cork. Decanted. Full color. Medium plus acidity. Substantial but well evolved tannins. Complex flavor with a slightly bitter finish.
Excellent to outstanding mature Cabernet, that for my taste was already past peak.
93-94
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10/21/2021 - dream Likes this wine: 93 Points
This was just a bit behind both the Gravelly Meadow and Volcanic Hill, at least on this occasion. Very sleek and refined with a silky, aged texture but a bit more muted with less fruit than the others. Still a very fine aged Cabernet and it came on in the glass but never reached the heights of the other two. I gave a 97 to the bottle I drank 3 years ago.
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10/21/2021 - adnorthup wrote:
1978 Diamond Creek and Monte Bello (MP Taverna, Irvington, NY): takes awhile to open up, but then shows beautiful fruit and more of the classic cab tertiary flavors. Loads of cassis, leather, brilliant long lingering finish. Does have a small iodine note, but it plays very well. Pales compared to VH and GM, but a fine wine.
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7/24/2019 - esh44 wrote:
Gorgeous wine. '78 Diamond Creek's are special and this was in the zone. Still has lots of structure/fruit to hold longer.
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3/11/2018 - Vinnut Likes this wine: 94 Points
Deep, dark garnet in color with ever-so-slight bricking & clearing at the edges. Full, fragrant & attractive nose of ripe fruit aromas of dark cherries, blackberries & plums with overtones of floral, eucalyptus & earthy/dusty notes, tobacco, leather, spices, mint, minerals, some mocha, smoky & a hint of cedar in the background. Full bodied with a very good concentration of well balanced & smooth textured, ripe fruit flavors of dark cherries, blackberries & plums with spices, herbs, minerals, cocoa. mushrooms & earthy. Long lingering & supple finish. Drinks quite well at present but is most likely at its peak of development at 40 years of age. While I do not detect it descending in its development, I doubt any further development would occur. Cork was clean & intact; fill was in the mid portion of the neck. A wonderful example of great, aged California Cabernet.
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12/17/2017 - dream Likes this wine: 97 Points
Another extraordinary wine from the golden age of California Cabernet. Incredible nose of eucalyptus and dark raspberry. Great acidity and freshness on the palate with fabulous flavors of dark raspberry, smoky cedar and eucalyptus and the texture just oozes classic Cabernet silkiness and power. Just a stunningly complex and taut finish with notes of spices and minerals. Makes it very clear how many decades have since been lost in Napa and California to sugar syrup.
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9/25/2017 - Jeff Leve wrote: 98 Points
This is what great, aged, California Cabernet is all about. Powerful concentrated, rich, complex and loaded with ripe, juicy, Cabernet Sauvignon, cedar, tobacco and spice. The wine has depth, length and complexity and it's young and fresh!
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10/25/2016 - nywine68 Likes this wine: 96 Points
1978 California with John Gilman (Craft): Classic, tannic, great structure and fruit. 1978 Cali Cab Tasting
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5/4/2016 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 93 Points
Diamond Creek Rare Wine Dinner (Charlie Palmer Steak): Red and black fruit on the nose with minty and menthol notes. The palate is so rich and vibrant, amazing that this is 38 years old. Good wine to drink right now. Superior to both the ’78 Gravelly Meadow and Volcanic Hill.
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8/16/2014 - cooberp Likes this wine: 94 Points
1978 Big Boys + friends (Riverpark, NYC): Firing on all cylinders. Leaps out of the glass with redcurrant, mint, honey, and a really distinctive Sierra Mist smell. Very fresh and lively with a light-framed body, refreshing acidity, an almost frizzante texture. Makes me envision a bumblebee buzzing around just-bloomed flowers in a spring meadow.
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8/4/2014 - coremill wrote: 92 Points
1978s + others at Riverpark: Explosive, sweet ripe black fruit on the nose, blackberries and plums. The fruit is sweet and fresh and leaps from the glass, and in the mouth the fruit is rich and lush and concentrated. But for a wine of this caliber, it's a bit one-note -- there's nothing like the complexity of the LMHB next to it -- and the tannins are just a touch rough around the edges and unrefined. I preferred the LMHB.
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8/15/2012 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
1978 Diamond Creek Red Rock Terrace offered earth, smoke, caramel, blackberry and tobacco scents led to a structured, powerful, full bodied Cabernet Sauvignon with a fresh, ripe, long finish.
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4/21/2012 - Grinner wrote: 94 Points
Cork in good shape, the wine was decanted off sediment, and tasted immediately. This 34 (!) year old wine is at the end of plateau but it was great. Garnet with brick rim, this has cassis, berries, eucalyptus, spice, stone, and some wood notes, all lingering nicely ~45 seconds. A really nice texture and resolved tannins. I liked the '78 VH a lot better at 20 yrs old, but that's apples and oranges....
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3/26/2012 - BCharlieG wrote: 92 Points
Various Vintage California Wine Dinner - Corkbuzz in NYC (Corkbuzz - NYC): Drank this along side the 1981 Diamond Creek Volcanic Hill and this one had much richer stewed fruit with a richer tannin structure. Excellent cedar, boxed wood, tobacco, leather, all spice w/ that bordeaux aged light weight and lavender. Stewed cherry and strawberry which shows maybe fruit probably dying a little in this wine. would drink now if not already a little missed on this. Paired w/ filet of beef au jus and parsnip puree.
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5/26/2011 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
Red Rock Terrace Cassis, stone, earth, blackberry, truffle and tobacco get you interested in a powerful full bodied, concentrated wine that served blind, would fool any taster into thinking it was an upper level Pauillac from a good vintage.
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2/5/2009 - bestdamncab Likes this wine: 93 Points
Blind tasting of four 1978 Cabernet Sauvignons. First place. Nice inky nose of black cherry fruit with hints of saddle leather and cedar, more of the same on the palate, very supple and rich tasting, tannins fully resolved, nice medium/long finish with hints of leather and cedar on the aftertaste.
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9/8/2007 - AllRed wrote: 92 Points
Edward Roberts Pre-Auction Tasting (Columbia Yacht Club): Ruby color, turning brown toward the rim. Aromas of tar, gravel and black currants. Decent fruit remaining on the palate, but it turns acidic on the finish. I revisited this toward the end of the tasting, about an hour after my initial note. It's added an earthy note, along with cedar, floral and red fruit tones. The overly acidic quality to the finish is gone, and what's left is very enjoyable.
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10/3/2004 - buckeye76 wrote: 94 Points
RICH LINGERING FRUIT IN THE NOSE AND FLAVOR WITH BLACK CHERRIES, BLACKBERRIES, CURRANTS, AND LEATHER. NICE COMPLEXITY AND A LONG FINISH.
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12/31/1999 - RogerG wrote:
Color still quite deep, brick edge. Nose a bit skunky but intense. Flavors delicious, slightly acidic but fully mature. Resiny, berries. Long finish.
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1/22/1999 - mdefreitas wrote: 95 Points
Pre Auction Wine Tasting w/ lots of Burgs (NYC): What a wine. Still going strong for a California wine. Gravel, earth, but still a good amount of fruit. Killer finish. A wow wine. It not only survived, it shined!
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