Cabernet Sauvignon Estate, Château Montelena 2002

Recent Pours: The 2002 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon Estate is about as classic as they come, and while it was tannic and structured when I first opened the bottle, an hour in a decanter helped soften the edges. Still, it’s just now getting to the early stages of maturity.

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.