Top shoulder fill, which is acceptable for a wine of this age but for me is a signal that it’s time to open this bottle.
A look back at a classic Napa Valley Cabernet. 1982 was a cooler vintage, but still quite successful. Rains and cool temperatures delayed flowering, which allowed for a late harvest, benefitting from a moderately warm early autumn also subjecting vineyards to light rains before and during harvest. It was considered a good but not great vintage in its day and while it has aged fairly well, it remains good but not great today.
Tudal’s vineyards were planted in 1973, on a gravelly and loamy flood plain that backs up to the Napa river, north of St. Helena where the Napa valley bends to the west and towards Calistoga. The slight bend int he valley and the rise up towards the Silverado trail to the east of Tudal helps to retain heat here.
Classic cabernet nose, full of roasted green peppers, currant fruit, tobacco, shoe polish, mint gravelly loamy soil, underbrush and a touch of black olive.
Tannin is almost fully resolved so this is a bit not he tart end of the spectrum but still has lots of currant and almost blueberry fruit up front, then cigar ash, cedar, and a slight roasted poblano flavor not he backend and though the fairly long finish. Obviously past its peak and a little lean and austere on the finish, but a lovely wine with fruity inner mouth perfumes on the lingering finish. Lacks a bit of flesh and a certain amplitude tot he flavors, but otherwise this is very well preserved, diminished, but fresh and enjoyable and very 1982 Napa valley Cabernet. With air this gains a whisper of sweetness, still on the lean side and supported by acidity, but with a kern of black currant fruit that has a lovely succulence to it with the acidity brightening it up on the finish lending it a more raspberry tone.
Wines like these are today’s greatest values. Yes, this is an old wine, but it still exhibited sufficient fruit for my palate with the textures and complexity that only comes with bottle age, and it’s probably available for much less than the current release. There are a whole slew of wines like these from the 1980s that are currently overlooked, and while at the end of their plateau of providing pleasure they are still delicious and a piece of history.
A look back at a classic Napa Valley Cabernet. 1982 was a cooler vintage, but still quite successful. Rains and cool temperatures delayed flowering, which allowed for a late harvest, benefitting from a moderately warm early autumn also subjecting vineyards to light rains before and during harvest. It was considered a good but not great vintage in its day and while it has aged fairly well, it remains good but not great today.
Tudal’s vineyards were planted in 1973, on a gravelly and loamy flood plain that backs up to the Napa river, north of St. Helena where the Napa valley bends to the west and towards Calistoga. The slight bend int he valley and the rise up towards the Silverado trail to the east of Tudal helps to retain heat here.
Classic cabernet nose, full of roasted green peppers, currant fruit, tobacco, shoe polish, mint gravelly loamy soil, underbrush and a touch of black olive.
Tannin is almost fully resolved so this is a bit not he tart end of the spectrum but still has lots of currant and almost blueberry fruit up front, then cigar ash, cedar, and a slight roasted poblano flavor not he backend and though the fairly long finish. Obviously past its peak and a little lean and austere on the finish, but a lovely wine with fruity inner mouth perfumes on the lingering finish. Lacks a bit of flesh and a certain amplitude tot he flavors, but otherwise this is very well preserved, diminished, but fresh and enjoyable and very 1982 Napa valley Cabernet. With air this gains a whisper of sweetness, still on the lean side and supported by acidity, but with a kern of black currant fruit that has a lovely succulence to it with the acidity brightening it up on the finish lending it a more raspberry tone.
Wines like these are today’s greatest values. Yes, this is an old wine, but it still exhibited sufficient fruit for my palate with the textures and complexity that only comes with bottle age, and it’s probably available for much less than the current release. There are a whole slew of wines like these from the 1980s that are currently overlooked, and while at the end of their plateau of providing pleasure they are still delicious and a piece of history.
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