2001 Robert Mondavi Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 1x750ml

Vinous 93+

(14.6% alcohol; 50% To Kalon): Bright, dark red. Lively aromas of cassis, violet and graphite suggest a juicy wine. Boasts terrific claret-like intensity and cut to its flavors of currant, tobacco, minerals, spices and leather; there’s a noble rusticity to this wine, which is distinctly Old World in style. Not especially fleshy–especially following the 2002–but finishes with superb cut, soil-driven salinity and length. The serious tannins are still tight. Interestingly, winemaker Janssens views 2001 as a powerful vintage for the Mondavi Reserve. This wine has good acidity but was also the highest vintage in pH (3.76) at the time. [Stephen Tanzer, 05/01/2016]

Anticipated maturity: 2018-2030

Robert Parker 94

A brilliant effort from Mondavi, the 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve (a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and the rest Malbec and Petit Verdot) exhibits complex aromatics of forest floor, sweet black cherry and black currant fruit, vanillin and lead pencil shavings. Dense and powerful as well as elegant and concentrated, the finish reveals moderate tannins, and the wine needs another 4-5 years of cellaring, but it has at least 25 years of upside left. [01/06/2011]

Anticipated maturity: 2015-2040