1988 Ridge Monte Bello, Santa Cruz County, California
Critics reviews
William Kelley - 31/05/2018
(Jancis Robinson MW, jancisrobinson.com - 11 Mar 2010)
1988 Ridge Montebello. Silky. Sexy. Sublime. Drink up thou!
(Simon Staples - Sales & Marketing Director)
About this WINE
Cabernet Sauvignon Blend
Cabernet Sauvignon lends itself particularly well in blends with Merlot. This is actually the archetypal Bordeaux blend, though in different proportions in the sub-regions and sometimes topped up with Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Petit Verdot.
In the Médoc and Graves the percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend can range from 95% (Mouton-Rothschild) to as low as 40%. It is particularly suited to the dry, warm, free- draining, gravel-rich soils and is responsible for the redolent cassis characteristics as well as the depth of colour, tannic structure and pronounced acidity of Médoc wines. However 100% Cabernet Sauvignon wines can be slightly hollow-tasting in the middle palate and Merlot with its generous, fleshy fruit flavours acts as a perfect foil by filling in this cavity.
In St-Emilion and Pomerol, the blends are Merlot dominated as Cabernet Sauvignon can struggle to ripen there - when it is included, it adds structure and body to the wine. Sassicaia is the most famous Bordeaux blend in Italy and has spawned many imitations, whereby the blend is now firmly established in the New World and particularly in California and Australia.
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Description
The 1988 Monte Bello is at its peak today, revealing a rustic bouquet of crme de cassis, cigar ash, leather and medicine cabinet that's marked by a touch of Brettanomyceslike many Bordeaux in this era. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, rich and quite multidimensional, with a generous core and a long, savory, spicy finish. The product of a hot summer, the 1988 was by all accounts somewhat austere in its youth, but its tannins have now melted away to reveal its briary mountain fruit. This was the second vintage of Monte Bello to be matured in entirely new wood, partly as an attempt to control brettanomyces; unfortunately, however, the yeast was able to feed on the oak sugars, making the problem worse. Tasters who don't mind this quality will want to add several points to my score, whereas those who're entirely intolerant of it will probably wish to deduct a few.
William Kelley - 31/05/2018
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