1985 Groth Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve

Groth's 1985 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve has consistently scored between 96-100 on six separate tastings. It was the winner of its flight in one tasting, and was undoubtedly the "wine of the vintage" for 1985 California Cabernet Sauvignon. Never as backward as many of its peers, it has always revealed a sweet, expansive, black-cherry and vanillin-scented, complex nose, as well as lavishly rich, full-bodied flavors that coat the palate with extraordinarily pure fruit, ripeness, power, and extraction. Its inner-core of sweetness and magnificent length put this wine into the category of celestial, legendary efforts. While unbelievably rich, the wine never comes across as heavy. It can be drunk now, but it promises to last for another 10-15+ years. Is Groth's 1985 Reserve the finest California Cabernet Sauvignon made during the decade of the eighties? Given the superb performances in 1983, 1984, 1985, and 1986, I wonder why Groth's Cabernets have become so herbaceous and vegetal in recent vintages since?