By: AJ McClellan
I have had the pleasure to try several superb 1974 Napa wines in the past month, and I must say, if you see them, buy them. The Mondavi that was opened stole the show, and while it fell off early, for the four hours that is was on, the bottle was a monster….
2004 Francois Gaunoux Meursault 1er La Goutte d’Or – Honey comb on the nose with tropical fruits and showing slight oxidative notes. The palate is thick and heavy with peaches, apricots, walnuts, vanilla, and big honey.
1985 Taurino Salice Salentino Riserva Rosso – This wine was pure earth, the wine even looked muddy pouring from the bottle with a rusty brown color. Wood floor, gym sock, must, big funk, loads of barnyard and forest floor on the nose. The palate showed musty gym locker with wet earth and a note of dusty cherry. The finish showed a particular note that reminds me of the north end of a south bound camel.
1979 Pichon Lalande – This wine is always a pleasure to drink. The nose showed clean earth with damp forest floor and dried blue and black fruits. The palate was broad and chocolaty with plums and blueberries coupled with dry leaves and cigar box.
1974 Robert Mondavi Reserve Cabernet – Christmas in a glass. Expansive and rich with big pine tree, spearmint, eucalyptus, mint jelly, faded old dusty red cherries and raspberries, intoxicating on the nose. The palate was surprisingly fresh but with an old ting on it. Fresh red fruits and a long finish of tobacco and dark chocolate evolved into sweet black currants and an old world Funk with some forest floor. After an hour in the glass the wine totally changed to show more funk and forest floor with notes of graphite; shedding the fruit and showing a great backing of earth and tar. After another hour and a half the wine started to fade quickly loosing the soft texture and electric nose. Four hours after the bottle was opened the wine had totally fallen off. A remarkable bottle, but not one to open and decant before service.
1978 Silver Oak Alexander Cabernet – This wine pleasantly surprised me, the nose still held some fruit and was mildly complex. The palate had the old familiar wood spice but the splinters were softened by old red fruit, not much to the wine but more than I expected.
1988 La Mission Haut Brion – This wine started off with a worrying nose of old cardboard and colored pencils. After an hour or so in the glass the wine blossomed showing graphite, tar, leather, smoke, and black cherries. Strong on the palate with a great funk of old forest floor and moist earth. The finish was not as long as I would have liked but the notes of soft earth still held on for 20 seconds or so.
1999 Bernard Amiot Chambolle Musigny 1er Les Chatelots – Slightly muted upon opening but after some time in the glass the nose opened to show bright red cherries, currants, pencil lead, black earth, purple flowers, and muddy earth. The palate was full of potpurri and red liquorish with juicy red fruits and an earthy finish.
2001 San Felice Poggio Rosso Chianti Classico – An excellent bottle of wine for the price. Dusty red cherries with earthy overtones on the nose. The palate was still fresh showing excellent fruit and a background of earth and spice.
1998 Mouton – Another wine that was not overly impressive out of the bottle but grew with time in the glass to show blueberries, raspberries, black cherries, big forest floor, and tar on the nose. The palate was a bushel of blueberries with classic graphite, hints of beef blood, and iron shavings. After another hour in the glass the wine started to show notes of liquorish and black currants. This wine needed almost two hours in the decanter before it was ready to drink but once it was on, the wine was on fire.