1982 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon Estate

Good full red with faint amber. Distinctly wild aromas of redcurrant, plum, musky tobacco, coffee and leather. Juicy and quite dry on the palate, showing less fruit purity and sweetness than the 1980. The plum and redcurrant flavors are joined by notes of herbs, mint and woodsmoke. Finishes with dusty tannins that turned drier with air. Incidentally, it is likely that this vintage and the vintages through 2002 included about 1% Cabernet Franc, from estate vines planted in the late '70s. (13.5% alcohol; this was Bo Barrett's first vintage; he recalls a harvest that began with rain but then benefited from drier weather)