April Tasting at Michael’s Genuine Food and Drink

Hosted at Michael’s Genuine Food and Drink, Wine Club Miami’s California Cabernet Tasting explored four unique vintage years with a selection of notable wines showcasing complexity and age. Wine Club Member, Jesus Cabarcos shares insights on the wines and vintages selected.

1997 Beaulieu Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Georges de Latour Private Reserve & 1997 Spring Mountain Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Miravalle-la Perla-Chevalier: The generous harvest of widely admired wines with all varieties ripening at once. To drink now. The riper, lusher character of the 1997 vintage means wines tended to be very well received upon first release but have proven less complex and age-worthy with time in the bottle compared with 1998, 1999, and 2001 vintages

2006 Pride Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Sonoma: An unusually cool, wet growing season forced growers to drop substantial quantities of rotten fruit and pushed the harvest back to November. Far from a banner year, though, the fruits of strict selection may surprise us.

2007 ZD Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford & 2007 Robert Mondavi Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley: Harvest began early mid-August in the warmer regions, then a cool September slowed ripening to a crawl, allowing physiological maturity to catch up with sugars. October warmed up, and most had their grapes in before late-October rains. Elegant, balanced wines. Yields down 15 to 25%.

2008 Chateau Montelena Cabernet Sauvignon: Sonoma’s earliest harvest, and very early throughout northern California. Fires in Mendocino affected red wines in the region and as far south as northern Napa Valley. It was one of the first vintages forcing producers to face the realities of smoke impact in California.

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