2002 Chateau Montelena, The Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Calistoga

This appears to be one of the great efforts from Chateau Montelena, something I think I was correct about when I gave it an “in the bottle” rating in 2006 of 95+. It is still an amazingly young wine that came from old vines on the famous St. George rootstock that did not require replanting because of the phylloxera epidemic that swept through Napa in the late 1980's and 1990's. Despite its lofty 14.4% alcohol (high by Montelena standards) and the overall flamboyance of the 2002 vintage, it needs another 4-6 years of cellaring. This young, classic Cabernet Sauvignon represents the quintessential traditional school of Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. It possesses an inky/blue/purple color in addition to a tight, but promising nose of black currants, crushed rocks, earth and spice. Rich, full-bodied, pure and brilliantly executed, with perfect harmony, this is a sensational yet forebodingly backward, youthful Cabernet Sauvignon that needs 4-6 years of cellaring and should keep another quarter of a century. Tel. (707) 942-5105; Fax (707) 942-4221

Bright dark red with ruby highlights. Flamboyantly ripe aromas of candied blackberry and baking spices verge on exotic. Larger-scaled and thicker than the more classically structured 2001, yet somehow still with very good definition to its sweet dark berry, black cherry, tar and earth flavors. This rich, deep, viscous wine finishes with big but suave tannins and lingering sweetness. Our bottle seemed starved of oxygen and expanded dramatically with air. This wine's sheer concentration should keep it going for another 20 years. (14.3% alcohol, the highest since 1978)