1991 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
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Tasting notes
Tony Soter’s last vintage and the only bottle in this vertical tasting that had to be replaced because the first was a bit volatile. 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc. No alcohol stated on the label. Second bottle of this transparent garnet wine was very fine and delicate if becoming a little spindly. On the way down. (JR)
Critic scores
Robert Parker
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
Fully mature scents of redcurrant and cedar plus a hint of orange zest. Quite suave and fine-grained on entry, offering red berry and cedar flavors. The middle palate displays some verve but this bottle is past its peak. Finishes with serious, dusty, somewhat drying tannins. Like so many 1991s, this wine could have used a bit more concentration. I'd drink it over the next few years. (13.9% alcohol)
1991 marked the last vintage with Tony Soter and Mia Klein. The year was the most abundant in Spottswoode’s history, producing 5,852 cases of a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Cabernet Franc. Interestingly, this was also one of the great early stars in the tasting, showing that high yields can (when conditions are perfect – and they were in 1991, with a long growing season with plenty of sunshine, but no real extreme heat waves). This wine still has a dense, ruby/bluish-purple color, full body, a stunning nose of black raspberry, blackcurrant, licorice and camphor. The wine has fabulous intensity, full body, sweet tannin and a long, long finish. It is easy to say this has reached full maturity, but it still has a youthfulness and vibrancy that belies that notion. Look for this to continue to drink well for another 20 years. This is a great vintage for Napa Bordeaux blends.
(aged in 50% new oak, including 5% American oak): Healthy dark red. Sexy aromas of currant, plum, fresh fig and espresso bean. Very suave and fine-grained, offering terrific definition and inner-mouth floral lift to the flavors of red fruits, mocha and coffee. An impeccably balanced wine with sound acidity and bulletproof fruit. Finishes with a repeating note of dried flowers and harmonious tannins that build without turning dry. Twenty-five years young.
About the producer
Spottswoode is one of those rare Napa estates whose reputation rests less on volume or spectacle than on persistent exactitude. Set on the western edge of St Helena, where the Mayacamas rise and afternoon breezes temper the valley’s warmth, the vineyard occupies a favoured pocket of the appellation.