137
142
146
OPUS ONE 1997 Napa Valley.
HARLAN ESTATE PROPRIETARY RED 1994 Napa Valley.
BERINGER VINEYARDS CABERNET SAUVIGNON KNIGHT’S VALLEY 1994 (1) Sonoma County.
6 bts. per lot $1,900 - $2,200
138 DOMINUS ESTATE 1985 (1) Napa Valley. u. ts.; w.s. 84 on label. 91 WA DOMINUS ESTATE 1987 (1) Napa Valley. u. bn DOMINUS ESTATE 1988 (1) Napa Valley. DOMINUS ESTATE 1989 (1) Napa Valley.
What can I say about the 1994? I have tasted the wine for three consecutive years, and each time it satisfied all of my requirements for perfection. The opaque purple color is followed by spectacular aromatics that soar from the glass, offering up celestial levels of black currants, minerals, smoked herbs, cedar wood, coffee, and pain grille. In the mouth, this seamless legend reveals full body, and exquisite layers of phenomenally pure and rich fruit, followed by a 40+ second finish. While accessible, the 1994 begs for another 5-7 years of cellaring. It should easily last for 30+ years. Every possible jagged edge - acidity, alcohol, tannin, and wood - is brilliantly intertwined in what seems like a diaphanous format. What is so extraordinary about this large-scaled wine, with its dazzling display of aromatics and prodigious flavors and depth, is that it offers no hint of heaviness or coarseness. Harlan's 1994 comes close to immortality in the glass. 96 WS 100 WA
DOMINUS ESTATE NAPANOOK VINEYARD 1991 (1) Napa Valley.
3 bts. per lot $3,300 - $3,800
DOMINUS ESTATE NAPANOOK VINEYARD 1992 (1) Napa Valley.
143
6 bts. per lot $1,000 - $1,300
139 DOMINUS ESTATE NAPANOOK VINEYARD 1994 Napa Valley.
DIAMOND CREEK CABERNET SAUVIGNON GRAVELLY MEADOW 1996 (1) Napa Valley. DIAMOND CREEK CABERNET SAUVIGNON VOLCANIC HILL 1996 (1) Napa Valley. u. bn. CAYMUS CABERNET SAUVIGNON 1997 (3) Napa Valley. 6 bts. per lot $600 - $700
147 CAYMUS CABERNET SAUVIGNON SPECIAL SELECTION 1995 Napa. u. 2bn. 7 bts.
BERINGER VINEYARDS CABERNET SAUVIGNON PRIVATE RESERVE 1990 (2) Napa Valley. 94 WA BERINGER VINEYARDS CABERNET SAUVIGNON PRIVATE RESERVE 1991 (5) Napa Valley.
per lot $1,100 - $1,300
148 CAYMUS CABERNET SAUVIGNON SPECIAL SELECTION 1995 Napa. u. 3bn. 7 bts.
per lot $1,100 - $1,300
If this were a Bordeaux, one would think it was 8-10 years old, not two decades. There are no hard edges, and the seamless integration of all the component parts make it one of the prodigious Beringer Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserves to drink now as well as over the next 20 years. May 2011 Drink: 2011-2031 96 WA
149
DOMINUS ESTATE NAPANOOK VINEYARD 1996 Napa Valley.
7 bts.
6 bts. per lot $400 - $500
144
141
BERINGER VINEYARDS CABERNET SAUVIGNON PRIVATE RESERVE 1995 Napa Valley.
Medium brick colored with a garnet core, the 1991 Grange has a wonderful perfume of black and red fruits preserves, prunes, figs and plum preserves with suggestions of licorice and dark chocolate. Medium to full-bodied, rich, powerful and spicy right through the long finish, this Grange still has loads of life and should cellar for another 10-20 years. 95 WA
4 bts. per lot $1,100 - $1,300
140
DOMINUS ESTATE NAPANOOK VINEYARD 1995 Napa Valley. 93 WA 1 3 ltr. per lot $400 - $500
per lot $800 - $1,000
Still an adolescent in its development, it possesses a dense purple color along with a big, sweet bouquet of blackberries and cassis, a youthful mouthfeel, good acidity, full body, abundant fruit and glycerin and a long, heady finish. This vintage was somewhat forgo"en because of all the hype surrounding 1994, but it has turned out to be a great one for Bordeaux varietals in Napa. This stunning Private Reserve should continue to drink well for another 15 or more years. May 2011 96 WA 6 bts. per lot $600 - $700
145 STERLING VINEYARDS CABERNET SAUVIGNON RESERVE 2001 Napa Valley. 7 bts.
per lot $300 - $400
PENFOLDS GRANGE BIN 95 1987 (1) South Australia. u. bn. PENFOLDS GRANGE BIN 95 1991 (1) South Australia.
PENFOLDS GRANGE BIN 95 1992 (2) South Australia. This is a very aromatic Grange that seems to be the product of a vintage where the wines are showing extremely well young. It is dense purple, with a sweet blackberry/cherry nose and some subtle cedar and licorice in the background, unctuously textured, thick, full, without as many nuances of some of the greatest vintages of Grange, but very concentrated and dense. 92 WA 4 bts. per lot $1,400 - $1,700