2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve
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Tasting notes
The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve is deep, plush and voluptuous. Although the first signs of tertiary maturity are starting to set in, the 2007 has enough depth to drink well for another decade or so. This is not an especially elegant style – certainly not relative to today's wines – but all things considered, the wine has held up well. The heavily extracted, oaky style is a remnant of a prior era at Mondavi and Napa Valley more generally.
Critic scores
Robert Parker
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
(the label says 16.0%!): Bright medium ruby. Inky blueberry and dark chocolate aromas are slightly porty and liqueur-like but not roasted or oxidative. Plush, thick, powerful and pure, showing uncommon breadth to the flavors of cassis, violet and bitter chocolate. Finishes with substantial sweet tannins and outstanding slowly mounting length. This wine is getting better and better. This bottle was less closed than the sample I tried at my vertical tasting last spring but is nonetheless a bit extreme and unrefined for this flagship Mondavi bottling. It's going to last a very long time, though.
(15.9% alcohol; 93% To Kalon): Dark red-ruby. Very expressive, ripe, slightly inky aromas of blueberry, camphor and licorice, plus a hint of sweet butter; distinctly warm but not roasted. Wonderfully concentrated and deep if a bit unrefined; a real fleshpot of fruit but this still needs time to burn off some of its baby fat and reveal its dark berries and minerals underneath. Finishes chewy, deep and very long, with big, slightly tough tannins. Will additional bottle aging bring more elegance? Give this a long spell in a decanter if you plan to uncork a bottle anytime soon.
90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot. 93% To Kalon Vineyard, remainder Oakville Bench. Cold, dry winter followed by a dry spring led to minimised vine growth. Warm spring temperatures sped bloom and fruit set but most of the growing season saw mild temperatures with slow, even ripening. Slightly lower yields. Fermented in the To Kalon wood tanks with 38 days' skin contact. Aged in 100% new French barrels for 18 months. Aromatics and palate of cassis and blackberry, dried and savoury herbs, garrigue and black olive with coffee through the finish. Powerful, rich, and ripe with lots of density throughout the palate. The focus here is on textural pleasure and filling the mouth with flavour. A starkly different mouthfeel and character than any of the pre-2000 vintages. While this is an ample wine it does carry the alcohol surprisingly well (versus the 2003 that shows up as hot – you would almost pin the 2003 as the higher alcohol wine in terms of palate presentation). There is a bigger difference in consistency of style and quality between the 2000, 2003 and 2007 (which are three markedly different wines) than there is from the 1999 to 2000 even with the introduction of the To Kalon cellar. (ECB)
About the producer
Robert Mondavi is a name known the world over. The ambitious businessman created his eponymous winery in 1966 to produce world-class wines in Napa, pioneering quality winemaking and becoming a champion for the region.