2006 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

The soft, round 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa possesses good berry fruit, seductive tannins, and minimal depth. It represents a very fine glass of Cabernet for enjoying over the next 6-7 years. Chateau Montelena’s sale to the owners of Bordeaux’s well-known second-growth, Chateau Cos d’Estournel, fell through, no doubt because of the global economic crisis. It was unquestionably shocking that this Napa icon was on the block, and about to be sold to, of all people, the French, who Montelena had defeated in the famous Steven Spurrier tasting of 1976. Tasting through the wines with the ever reliable Bo Barrett is always a lesson in candor and honesty. Montelena’s negociant blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, from northern vineyards in the Calistoga area, is meant to represent a Montelena house style, but it is much softer and less ageworthy, thus is the ideal restaurant/steakhouse wine. Tel. (707) 942-5105; Fax (707) 942-4221

Full ruby-red. Less funky on the nose than the 2005, offering notes of cassis, licorice, cedar and pepper. A juicy midweight with good life in the mouth and a restrained sweetness. Bo Barrett told me that he waited a couple of extra weeks for the last cabernet to ripen, and that the acids remained high. The blend was put together later than usual and will require time to harmonize. This lacks the jammy richness of some vintages from earlier this decade, but that's not a bad thing.