1996 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve

The Mondavi winery was in the process of changing its director of winemaking during the '97 harvest, and, according to several Mondavi execs, the inmates were running the asylum at the time. From my early tastings of the '97s, they have done well. Mondavi cabernet-based wines, especially those entirely or largely from the great To-Kalon Vineyard, continue to the be standouts here, but the uncompromisingly dry and serious white wines are better balanced than ever before for development in bottle (no doubt the growing percentage of natural yeasts plays a role). This strikes me as a rather daring strategy, considering that many wine neophytes instinctively gravitate toward the Mondavi name on restaurant wine lists. But then the Mondavi operation has traditionally been ahead of the curve. The '97 chardonnays, including the Reserve, were all bottled before the '98 harvest to retain freshness and verve.

Among the thousands of acres of vineyards owned by this winery, the historic To-Kalon Vineyard remains the standout, as well as the foundation for the winery most renowned bottlings. But this 450-acre holding, 80% of which is currently under vine, has seen huge changes in recent years. To-Kalon's history dates back to 1868, and more than 400 grape varieties have been planted here at one time or another over the years. Much of the vineyard has been replanted recently, and another 100 acres are slated for replanting in 1998. From direct experience, the Mondavis have learned that these gravelly, well-drained soils in the benchland west of the Napa River in Oakville are not ideally suited for pinot noir or chardonnay. Thus, 60% of the vineyard will now be planted to the red Bordeaux varieties (mostly cabernet sauvignon), another 30% to sauvignon blanc, and the rest to zinfandel and sangiovese. Interestingly, despite the fact that the cabernet sauvignon from this vineyard was always elegant and vibrant, it was long felt to be too firm and high in acidity to make a complete wine without the addition of fruit from elsewhere. But by replanting at higher vine density and using vertical trellising to minimize shading of the fruit, the Mondavis are already producing rounder, softer wine on the same site. The '96 To-Kalon cabernet I tasted in early March was the first experiment with all-To-Kalon cabernet at Mondavi. The winery's objective here is to turn the cabernet sauvignon reserve into an all-To-Kalon wine, as the sauvignon blanc already is.