Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2002

  • 96 Robert
    Parker
  • 96 Jeb
    Dunnuck
  • 93 Wine
    Enthusiast
  • 91 Wine &
    Spirits
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Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 Front Bottle Shot
Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 Front Bottle Shot Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 Front Label Chateau Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2002 Back Bottle Shot

Product Details


Varietal

Region

Producer

Vintage
2002

Size
750ML

ABV
14.4%

Your Rating

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Somm Note

Winemaker Notes

In the glass the 2002 has a dark, inky-purple color, saturated to the edge. It has a pronounced aromatic bouquet of luxurious pure ripe fruit, cassis and earth. The wine's diverse, complex and powerful flavor profile - with ripe cassis, blackberry, and black cherry flavors supported by hints of tar and earth - prove that the painstaking and slow process of partial row harvesting was well worth the effort. The tiny Cabernet berries yielded from the vineyard's dry soils produced powerful yet silky tannins and a refreshing backbone of acidity which, combined with its bold structure and rich flavors, infused it with plenty of power to age for a long while. The wine is elegant, showy and polished, with plenty of body and plush ripeness.

Professional Ratings

  • 96
    his appears to be one of the great efforts from Chateau Montelena, something I think I was correct about when I gave it an “in the bottle” rating in 2006 of 95+. It is still an amazingly young wine that came from old vines on the famous St. George rootstock that did not require replanting because of the phylloxera epidemic that swept through Napa in the late 1980's and 1990's. Despite its lofty 14.4% alcohol (high by Montelena standards) and the overall flamboyance of the 2002 vintage, it needs another 4-6 years of cellaring. This young, classic Cabernet Sauvignon represents the quintessential traditional school of Napa Cabernet Sauvignon. It possesses an inky/blue/purple color in addition to a tight, but promising nose of black currants, crushed rocks, earth and spice. Rich, full-bodied, pure and brilliantly executed, with perfect harmony, this is a sensational yet forebodingly backward, youthful Cabernet Sauvignon that needs 4-6 years of cellaring and should keep another quarter of a century.
    Rating: 96+
  • 96
    Still an infant that needs even more cellaring, the 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate is an incredible Cabernet Sauvignon that brings to mind the 1991 Dominus (maybe not quite as voluptuous). Still vibrant and youthfully color, it has textbook notes of blackcurrants, cedar, lead pencil shavings and crushed rock-like minerality. Elegant, yet powerful and concentrated, with plenty of structure, it needs an hour decant if drinking anytime soon, and has another two to three decades of longevity.
  • 93
    Right now this wine is strutting its stuff, showing dense, fudge-like scents of tobacco, cassis and whiffs of vanilla and coconut and flavors of blackberry with lashings of vanilla and cocoa. But like many vintages of Montelena, expect this one to shut down in another year only to reemerge as a beauty around age 10 or 12. Another classic. Cellar Selection.
  • 91
    Montelena blends their estate grapes with fruit from other Calistoga sources to create this cabernet. In '02, it has the rich, seamless density of a young Cos d'Estournel. The black extract offers fineness rather than rough edges, the finish lifted by peppery spice. Cleanly made, and ready for grilled sirloin.

Other Vintages

2019
  • 96 Robert
    Parker
2018
  • 96 Vinous
  • 94 Robert
    Parker
  • 93 Decanter
2017
  • 93 Vinous
2016
  • 92 Jeb
    Dunnuck
2015
  • 97 Jeb
    Dunnuck
  • 95 Robert
    Parker
2014
  • 95 Jeb
    Dunnuck
  • 93 Wilfred
    Wong
2013
  • 96 Robert
    Parker
  • 92 Wine
    Spectator
2012
  • 95 Wilfred
    Wong
  • 93 Robert
    Parker
2011
  • 94 Vinous
2010
  • 94 Robert
    Parker
  • 93 James
    Suckling
  • 91 Wine
    Spectator
2009
  • 93 International
    Wine Cellar
2008
  • 95 Robert
    Parker
  • 92 Wine
    Spectator
2007
  • 94 Robert
    Parker
  • 92 Wine
    Enthusiast
  • 92 James
    Suckling
2006
  • 94 Jeb
    Dunnuck
  • 93 James
    Suckling
  • 91 Robert
    Parker
2005
  • 96 Decanter
  • 95 Robert
    Parker
  • 95 Jeb
    Dunnuck
  • 90 Wine
    Enthusiast
2004
  • 94 Robert
    Parker
2003
  • 94 Robert
    Parker
  • 90 Wine
    Enthusiast
  • 90 Wine
    Spectator
2001
  • 91 Robert
    Parker
2000
  • 90 Wine
    Spectator
  • 90 Wine &
    Spirits
  • 90 Robert
    Parker
1999
  • 95 Robert
    Parker
  • 95 International
    Wine Cellar
  • 94 Wine
    Spectator
1998
  • 93 Robert
    Parker
1997
  • 98 Robert
    Parker
  • 95 Wine
    Spectator
1996
  • 93 Robert
    Parker
  • 92 Wine
    Spectator
1995
  • 94 Robert
    Parker
  • 92 Wine
    Spectator
1994
  • 95 Robert
    Parker
  • 95 Wine
    Spectator
1993
  • 91 Robert
    Parker
  • 90 Wine
    Spectator
1992
  • 95 Robert
    Parker
  • 90 Wine
    Spectator
1991
  • 95 Robert
    Parker
  • 91 Wine
    Spectator
1990
  • 94 Robert
    Parker
  • 94 Wine
    Spectator
1989
  • 91 Robert
    Parker
1988
  • 91 Decanter
1987
  • 98 Robert
    Parker
1986
  • 96 Robert
    Parker
  • 92 Wine
    Spectator
1985
  • 92 Robert
    Parker
1984
  • 92 Robert
    Parker
1982
  • 90 Robert
    Parker
1980
  • 91 Robert
    Parker
1979
  • 90 Wine
    Spectator
Chateau Montelena

Chateau Montelena

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Chateau Montelena, California
Chateau Montelena The Estate at Chateau Montelena Winery Image

Chateau Montelena’s history is one of the deepest and most storied in the Napa Valley and California. Founded just north of Calistoga by a senator and San Francisco entrepreneur in 1882 at the turn of the century, it was one of the largest wineries in the state. Prohibition put an end to Montelena’s winemaking, and the next major era began in 1968, when Jim Barrett purchased the estate. Jim fell in love with this exceptional property, blessed with a complex mix of soils, slopes and biodiversity of wildlife and fauna. He had a dream of creating wine at the level of the great First Growths of Bordeaux, and set about replanting the vineyard, outfitting the winery with modern equipment, and studying the processes necessary for farming and winemaking at the highest quality level.

In 1976 Chateau Montelena put California at the forefront of the wine world. That year a who’s-who of the French wine and food establishment gathered for a grand tasting at the Inter-Continental Hotel in Paris. Four white Burgundies were tasted against six California Chardonnays. When the scores were tallied, the French Judges were convinced that the top-ranking white wine was one of their own. In fact, it was Chateau Montelena’s 1973 Chardonnay, rated above all other wines. This seminal event has been memorialized in the book "The Judgment of Paris," by George Taber, as well as in the 2008 feature film Bottle Shock.

Today Chateau Montelena’s distinct 19th century stone structure stands as a quality icon in Napa Valley, consistently producing some of the finest wines in California. Master Winemaker Bo Barrett, Jim’s son, now runs the estate with the help of Winemaker Matt Crafton and Vineyard Manager Dave Vella.

Image for Cabernet Sauvignon content section
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A noble variety bestowed with both power and concentration, Cabernet Sauvignon enjoys success all over the globe, its best examples showing potential to age beautifully for decades. Cabernet Sauvignon flourishes in Bordeaux's Medoc where it is often blended with Merlot and smaller amounts of some combination of Cabernet Franc, Malbecand Petit Verdot. In the Napa Valley, ‘Cab’ is responsible for some of the world’s most prestigious, age-worthy and sought-after “cult” wines. Somm Secret—DNA profiling in 1997 revealed that Cabernet Sauvignon was born from a spontaneous crossing of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc in 17th century southwest France.

Image for Calistoga Wine Napa Valley, California content section

Calistoga Wine

Napa Valley, California

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One of Napa Valley’s oldest wine growing subregions but last to gain appellation status, Calistoga occupies the northernmost section of the valley. Beginning at the foot of Mount St. Helena, its vineyards stretch over steep canyons and roll out onto the valley floor. The soils in Calistoga are volcanic, which means they are heavy in minerals, low in organic matter and allow good drainage for vine roots, creating less green growth and more concentration of flavor within the grape berries.

Summer days are very hot but most nights cool down with moist ocean breezes sneaking in over the Mayacamas Mountains or from Knights Valley to its northwest.

Cabernet Sauvignon is the area’s star variety with Zinfandel coming in a strong second, though the latter commands far less price per tonnage so continues to be outshined by Cabernet in vineyard acreage, save for some important exceptions.

MMR87325_2002 Item# 87325

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