1980 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve
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Tasting notes
84.1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12.6% Merlot, 3.3% Cabernet Franc. A cold growing season included a late harvest, leading to long hang time and cool, persistent grape development. A heat spell at the end meant grapes then ripened quickly at the very end. Thanks to the long growing season, tannins and acidity levels were amplified. Fermented at 85 °F (29.5 ºC) in stainless steel for four days with 10 days' additional skin contact. After malolactic conversion it was aged in French oak (98% new) for 22 months. This is a delicious wine with a nice balance of ample structure, persistent acidity and a lovely aged quality still lifted by freshness and a long finish. There is such a core of power and density here but no aggressiveness and plenty of focus. Notes of mushroom and spice, full of garrigue and notes of dark chocolate. A lovely wine with still plenty of life left in the bottle. (ECB)
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
Last Tasted 2/93 Another wine from the "no bouquet" school of winemaking, only vague scents of cardboard and red fruits are detectable. The color remains dark ruby, but the wine tastes acidified, tart, and thin. It is a monument to the high tech, citric Cabernets that are the antithesis of what wine is meant to be - pleasurable.
About the producer
Robert Mondavi is a name known the world over. The ambitious businessman created his eponymous winery in 1966 to produce world-class wines in Napa, pioneering quality winemaking and becoming a champion for the region.