1978 Monte Bello
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Tasting notes
This was a fabulous showing for the 1978 Monte Bello, which is another of the high points of this great decade for Ridge. The wine offers up a rich and kaleidoscopically complex bouquet of black truffles, dark chocolate, black currants, pencil shavings and Egyptian musk. On the palate, it's full-bodied, layered and complete, with ripe, melting tannins, an ample core of fruit and a long, tangy finish. It gets better and better with air. The 1978 is a touch more savory and a little less lavishly textural than the 1974, but the two are very close in ultimate quality. Connoisseurs will be interested to learn that a portion of the 1978 was rebottled due to an incomplete malolactic fermentation: antique olive bottles indicate the rebottled 1978, whereas the original bottles are in Champagne green. This tasting note refers to a pristine example of the former, but the original bottling is reputed to be even better today.
Critic scores
Jancis Robinson MW
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
Balsam notes again and sweet fruit but this bottle was drying out. (JR)
Looks rusty and ruby and older than the 1968! Smells a little old with just a hint of Elastoplast. Fresh and lively. Zesty. Transparent. Racy. Very complete. (JR)
The 1978 Cabernet Sauvignon Monte Bello is exotic, sweet, perfumed and layered, with an almost liqueur-like richness, but no sense of heaviness at all. Hard candy, wild flowers, cinnamon and mint give the wine much of its eccentric, wild personality. In 1978, the malos did not fully finish in barrel. Ridge bottled the wine anyway with a trace of malic acid, only to find the wine bubbling in bottle. All of the bottles were uncorked, the wine finished its malo and was subsequently rebottled. A portion of the wine was never sold, which is why some stock remains today. Paul Draper explains that at the outset, everyone at Ridge thought the wine was not particularly of note and that it would not age. Well, the 1978 has aged just fine, even if its not one of the truly great Monte Bellos.
About the producer
Best known for its iconic Monte Bello, Ridge Vineyards makes some of California’s finest wines – particularly Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel. Long a pioneer of sustainable farming and minimal-intervention winemaking, Ridge makes an extensive range from Sonoma County and the Santa Cruz Mountains.