1986 Heitz Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard

The 1986 Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard reveals a garnet color, with some amber just beginning to appear at the rim. Although uncomplex, the nose offers sweet, curranty fruit, and damp, earthy, foresty aromas. The wine's attack reveals sweet, full-bodied, cherry and black fruit flavors, and a robust, concentrated finish. The coarse, astringent tannin kept my score from going higher. This could still turn out to be an outstanding wine, but the thick, juicy fruit it exhibited in its youth appears to have quickly taken a back seat to the wine's structural components ... acidity and tannin. It can be drunk or cellared for another 10-15+ years. This wine was less impressive than when I first tasted it. The tasting notes for this section are from two single blind tastings, one conducted in May, 1996, in California, and the other in June, 1996, in Baltimore.