This was a solo bottle purchased in 2003 that I paid about $80 for. So this wine has been in my 55F cellar for 20 years. Popped the cork and poured. Color here shows expect brick color at the rim. Nose is totally California Cabernet. First sip indicated a wine of breed. Exceptional balance here, nothing out of place. Superb depth to this wine. Earthy, sweet tobacco notes. Finish on this goes on and on and on! This is a totally beautiful wine and one of the best cabs I have had this year!! Well done John Kongsgaard!!
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I hesitate to be rating this wine higher than anyone else. I bought a couple bottles of this wine almost 20 years ago based on the Parker hype. Sold one and kept one. This was definitely worth the wait! This wine has superb balance and a well developed nose of earth and dried fruits. A very elegant and graceful wine. The finish is packed with an exceedingly long finish. This is frankly a special wine, wish I had kept the other bottle I sold! BTW - My cellar is 55F year round.
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Not really that many notes here on a wine that is now nearly 28 years of age. Perhaps a sign of a wine that flies a bit under the radar!
I completely respect the views of the previous taster, favoring younger and more modern expressions of this varietal, but I have to give a strong plug to these Philip Togni Cabernets. A close friend and I shared a bottle of the 1990 last night alongside a 2005 Seavey with ribeye steaks, grilled sweet corn, bok choy, and peaches. The steaks were awesome by the way but the 1990 Togni won the evening. This was pulled from my 55F cellar, one of 2 bottles purchased from a respectable dealer in Minneapolis back in 1995. Only the color gave the Togni away, it actually tasted younger than the 2005 Seavey! A remarkable wine that was completely fresh and alive and capable of lasting several more years in a "cool" cellar. While the alcohol level of the 1990 was not listed I'll bet it wasn't the 15.4% listed for the Seavey. The Seavey was also great and will probably make old bones but many modern expressions carrying such elevated [physiologically mature?] alcohols may not. If you enjoy classic Bordeaux you may well like these Togni Cabernets ... Philip was trained in Bordeaux. Also, these wines can take decades to reach their peak so a cool cellar is essential to the experience. The 1990 is a wine of great depth and complexity. Red and black fruits, tobacco notes, sweet herbal tones, big aromatics, and a long finish. The tannins are now nearly fully resolved. I wish I had many more bottles of this vintage! As good as it was, however, it's not in my opinion the equal of the 1991 which ranks as one of the best of this remarkable Napa vintage.
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2000 Arietta Red Wine H Block Hudson Vineyards
8/3/2023 - RUDEDOG Likes this wine: 98 Points
This was a solo bottle purchased in 2003 that I paid about $80 for. So this wine has been in my 55F cellar for 20 years. Popped the cork and poured. Color here shows expect brick color at the rim. Nose is totally California Cabernet. First sip indicated a wine of breed. Exceptional balance here, nothing out of place. Superb depth to this wine. Earthy, sweet tobacco notes. Finish on this goes on and on and on! This is a totally beautiful wine and one of the best cabs I have had this year!! Well done John Kongsgaard!!
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2000 Argiano Solengo Toscana IGT
1/7/2023 - RUDEDOG Likes this wine: 96 Points
I hesitate to be rating this wine higher than anyone else. I bought a couple bottles of this wine almost 20 years ago based on the Parker hype. Sold one and kept one. This was definitely worth the wait! This wine has superb balance and a well developed nose of earth and dried fruits. A very elegant and graceful wine. The finish is packed with an exceedingly long finish. This is frankly a special wine, wish I had kept the other bottle I sold! BTW - My cellar is 55F year round.
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1990 Philip Togni Cabernet Sauvignon
8/9/2018 - RUDEDOG Likes this wine: 96 Points
Not really that many notes here on a wine that is now nearly 28 years of age. Perhaps a sign of a wine that flies a bit under the radar!
I completely respect the views of the previous taster, favoring younger and more modern expressions of this varietal, but I have to give a strong plug to these Philip Togni Cabernets. A close friend and I shared a bottle of the 1990 last night alongside a 2005 Seavey with ribeye steaks, grilled sweet corn, bok choy, and peaches. The steaks were awesome by the way but the 1990 Togni won the evening. This was pulled from my 55F cellar, one of 2 bottles purchased from a respectable dealer in Minneapolis back in 1995. Only the color gave the Togni away, it actually tasted younger than the 2005 Seavey! A remarkable wine that was completely fresh and alive and capable of lasting several more years in a "cool" cellar. While the alcohol level of the 1990 was not listed I'll bet it wasn't the 15.4% listed for the Seavey. The Seavey was also great and will probably make old bones but many modern expressions carrying such elevated [physiologically mature?] alcohols may not. If you enjoy classic Bordeaux you may well like these Togni Cabernets ... Philip was trained in Bordeaux. Also, these wines can take decades to reach their peak so a cool cellar is essential to the experience. The 1990 is a wine of great depth and complexity. Red and black fruits, tobacco notes, sweet herbal tones, big aromatics, and a long finish. The tannins are now nearly fully resolved. I wish I had many more bottles of this vintage! As good as it was, however, it's not in my opinion the equal of the 1991 which ranks as one of the best of this remarkable Napa vintage.
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