Sterling Vineyards, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

This remains a magical and timeless bottle of Cabernet at age 50. So much velvety fruit made complex with cedar, dried spices and tobacco leaf. Loads of fruit and well-proportioned structure remaining.

1974 vintage

To Tony (La Grange Park, IL) : Corked.

1974 vintage

corked

1974 vintage

Almost 2 years to the day since I last had the pleasure of tasting this, the '74 Sterling Reserve shows similarly. Potent, serious, dusty black cherry, a little bit of bay leaf, mint, sage, black earth, coffee, cocoa powder. Serious, brooding, deep. Still whoppingly tannic!

1974 vintage

Dinner at Ember with Brian and Rosemany Talley and friends (Arroyo Grande, CA) : Bought three different '74 Napa cabs for my birthday celebration. This bottle was way past peak and undrinkable. Poured all of it out. (Note that the auction site I purchased this from refunded me for it. Amazing!) Brad - heavypourwine.com.

1974 vintage

Exceptional bottle, and a click-or-two better than the regular 74 Sterling Cab tasted a few days prior, though with a clear Ric Forman signature of tobacco leaf laced throughout the mature, yet fresh Cab fruit. Cruising along in a delicious late peak.

1974 vintage

Nice treat-bright acidity and light tannins, plum, dark cherry. Truly a blast from the past!

1996 vintage

I think this one is about done. Not bad, but it's on the downhill slope.

1999 vintage

Cali Cabernet in its full glory. It's got a gravelly, tobacco and capsicum infused underpinning while brimming with sweet currant fruit. Giving everything right now and it's almost magical.

1973 vintage

Locke's 50th bday dinner. Always a crap shoot on these older bottles and this one didn't come through. Cork was saturated all the way through and poured quite brown. Still some tannins hanging on, a lot of acidity. Maybe a little red fruit after 15-20 minutes but mostly leather, tobacco, earth, a little smoke and spice on the end. My standard line w/ older bottles rang true... 'more interesting than good'. Still fun to drink and think about but too …

1973 vintage

lucky to be able to try this, showed remarkably well and another one of the pre 80's Napa wines that grabs your attention. amazing balance, good sap, this wine was silky and smooth, with a touch of smoke. no way would I guess it to be 49 years old.

1973 vintage

Drunk from a magnum. Cork was leaking and sunk when lifted upright. Had little hope for the bottle. Wow, so glad I saw the cork sink. A beast of a wine. Immense leather and tobacco on the nose. Similarly on the palate. Drinks much more like a bordeaux than Napa - reminiscent of a good montrose or cos. A real delight straight out, curious to see how it drinks over a few hours.

1973 vintage

Incredible youth from this 1974 Sterling. Plum, cassis, rose petal, vanilla and currant. The fruit is vibrant and plush and the texture is beautifully silky. This is cruising towards 50 with so much to give.

1974 vintage

This is shockingly young - followed for a few hours it’s not clear that this is actually fully mature. Blackberry, black trumpet, iodine profile, beef bouillon, oak. Really muscular - a big punch. As bizarre as it seems to say it about a 74… hold it longer.

1974 vintage

Unfortunately seemed sherries or saw some heat at some point. Mid neck fill so was totally taking a flyer anyway. Seemed like it still had terrific fruit underneath.

1974 vintage

An enjoyable, quality bottle that is mostly resolved. This must have experienced lots of new oak because it remains too lush and plush

1996 vintage

corked

1974 vintage

Incredibly, it still has some fruit. If you own this, you should drink it now, no question. It won’t get any better. But it is not quite over the hill and still just terrific and fun to drink.

1974 vintage

Popped for a friend born in ‘73. This is really good. Terrific color, wonderful cab scents which harken to both Cali and Claret, that smoothed palate that only old wines get, a terrific core of rounded plummy fruit but with lots of verve and brightness. If one were to quibble, not earth moving (like, say, the 74 Martha’s) being perhaps a touch straight-forward. Overall, utterly delicious and in a great place still, and so much fun to get to experience …

1973 vintage

Clear garnet with brown edges. Eucalyptus, green pepper mint and an herbaceous character highlight a dark red fruit and cigar box nose. Fresh and clean with savory dark red fruits tobacco and dried plum carried by fine soft tannins and bright cleansing acidity. Fabulous.

1974 vintage

Still going strong

1973 vintage

Wow, smoke, leather, paprika and red fruit. I can’t believe the amout of fruit this still has. Its got body, softened tannins and elegance that you dont see in california today.

1973 vintage

These old Ric Forman Sterlings are really magic. Has held up well, nice balance of acid and just a wisp of tannin. Lots of dried fruits, herbs a bit of smoke and earth. I love the gentle thrust on the finish.

1974 vintage

These Ric Forman Sterlings are magical. So youthful and complex with a distinct / intense tar and cigar note that I always get in Ric's wines. Fruit is round and rich with fine tannin and still fresh acids. Whoa. Rocking at age 45.

1974 vintage

Impressive amount of fruit still present after 45+ years and so much complexity. If tasted blind would have guessed it was an aged Brunello and not a Napa cab. Peaked 45 minutes after opening and fell off a cliff after 75 minutes so drink up after popping the cork.

1973 vintage

This is the most impressive 20+ year old California Cabernet I ever tasted. If tasted blind, I would never guess it is 45 years old. Of course, the cork broke in half - had to leave half inside the bottle. Most of the sediment stuck to the sides of the bottle, so decanting was a bit of a mystery. The nose was quite nice, similar to a Rhone. Never would peg this as a California Cabernet. In the mouth, this …

1973 vintage

Better served on the cool side to emphasize the freshness. A bit of cherry, some plum, but mostly cassis on the nose and palate. Medium bodied, smooth and pleasing. Nicely aged and holding well.

1999 vintage

Have to agree with Nerdy boy - lush, beautiful, rounded Bordeaux like. Mountain fruit can make the long haul. Thoroughly enjoyable.

1996 vintage

Excellent condition, despite 3cm. ullage; decanted when the cork fell in. Leather and cedar on the nose, deep colour, little fading. Morello cherries, blueberries in the mouth, very long.

1974 vintage

Drink now. Starting to fade. Decant 6+ hours.

1999 vintage

1974 California Tasting (Cafe Boulud) : Clearly a step up from the regular Napa bottling. Awesome acidity and freshness left despite its 43 years of age (and despite being the 22nd wine in the line-up tonight!). This showed very nicely! 1974 Cali Cab tasting

1974 vintage

The last of this stash of four, and probably the best of the lot, even if not nearly as good as a fresher bottle from a different source I had. The black fruit has gotten a little BBQ sauceish, but this is full of cedar and smokey gravel, it could probably pass for a Graves. Not drying out at all.

1974 vintage

Christmas Eve Fleming's Dinner, lovely bouquet upon opening, cork broke into two pieces, bright plum color in the glass, both red and black cherry fruit, plum, touch of bell pepper and pine, same on the palate, mouth filling fruit, slightly subdued, almost elegant, very tasty, medium body, showing it's age, showing good acid, favorable comments from the servers and guests, long finish and long aftertaste.

1973 vintage

Nose: The nose is perfumed and balanced with red and black currants, cedar tones, dark red cherries, some soy, and leather. There is a refined sense to the nose with excellent depth, even though the tones are fading just a bit. Taste: Medium bodied with medium acidity and medium tannins. The structure is completely resolved with the feel showing off a lot of class with red and black currants, cedar, dark red cherries, and some leather tones. Overall: While this …

1974 vintage

Like the other bottles from this stash, not perfectly pristine or fresh. But still very good, in a mature tertiary way. Not a whole lot of fruit left but not dried out either, instead it is very cedary and savory, full of beefy umami character and which makes it a great pairing with a steak. Just as good if not better on day 2, which I find is rarely the case with old wines.

1974 vintage

From a bottle with a spinning capsule, although the cork broke during removal. A very nice older wine, red currant and blue fruit (is there any Merlot in here), mint and graphite, far from a bruiser but plenty of velvety extract left. Held up well in the fridge over 3 days.

1973 vintage

After one hour of air, this wine was very nice. It had a forward fruity nose and great fruit. It showed a medium full body with some cedar and dark fruit. Nice long finish. Overall, this wine deserves to be enjoyed and appreciated.

1973 vintage

tasted 12/25/2015 for Christmas dinner. cork and fill excellent. great nose, soft tannins, still full in the mouth. classic taste. blown away by this 41 year old wine. and I still have 2 more bottles!

1974 vintage

Nicely aged and mature. Mostly leather and cassis on the nose. Very earthy on the palate with lots of tertiary elements... dried currants, dried herbs, and ceder. Well integrated tannins. This will not improve but got a couple of years left in the tank. Great pairing with a juicy ribeye.

1999 vintage

Opened up a lot with two hours of air. Berries, cedar, tobacco, dill. On the palate, tart red berries (cassis), earth. Very nice texture; fairly light, with light tannin and medium acid. Tart fruit and cedar into the medium finish. No improvement from here, but this bottle is holding very well. I imagine that this was absolutely stunning ten years ago, but still beautiful now.

1974 vintage

A HDH purchase - this was in impeccable condition with the fill at the base of the neck. The fruit is remarkably vibrant and bright here - a core of fresh berries and currant fruit framed by cedar, tobacco, and more savoury developed earthy notes. This seems to be at peak - the tannin's fully resolved, but there's still plenty of bright acidity beneath giving it lift, and this keeps getting more complex and fragrant with air. Fantastic wine. Does …

1974 vintage

Nice classic aged cab with plum nose and good amounts of currant, plums and coffee notes.

1999 vintage

Utterly delightful! This 1996 Bordeaux-like blend at approximately 20 years of age proved once again that well made aged Napa CABs perform exactly as designed. Perfectly smooth, silky and slightly lush, with minimal fruit. Your guests will enjoy this unique find!

1996 vintage

After 90 minutes decanting, it was dark ruby red with a faint brown edge. The nose was fruity but not particularly forward. The body was very full with great fruit and substance....some cherries, some tobacco and cedar. l long lingering finish. Stored in my cellar for almost forty years. A delightful claret.

1973 vintage

Much better than a bottle opened a few nights ago, but still not nearly as good as the one I had in March. Needed about an hour of air to fully wake up. Still plenty of cassis/blackberry fruit, a dose of mint and cedar, some tobacco and earth. Not overly tart, but this lacks the freshness and lush character of that previous bottle and there's not quite enough fruit concentration left to buffer the tannins, which are earthy and drying. …

1974 vintage

Very savory and cedary, not much fruit, starting to dry out. Not up to the level of a previous bottle a few months ago.

1974 vintage

Classic aged cab with plum, cassis, tea and nice long finish

1999 vintage

Old Sterling Reserve Vertical (Hill Country) : Pure cassis fruit, fresh florals, cedary development, earth -- everything you could want in a mature Napa cab. Masses of earthy fruit on the palate, elegant and long, with the tannic structure just slightly outweighing the concentration on its own, so it's better with food, with smooths out the tannin. A lovely bottle, just edged for me by the bigger 1977.

1974 vintage

Old Sterling Reserve Vertical (Hill Country) : This bottle had a whiff of walnutty oxidation. While it never quite disappeared, the wine was much better after 90 minutes, when the fruit really woke up and asserted itself and the nuttiness faded into the background. The least ripe and most mature wine in the group, this has a lighter fruit profile, is more autumnal, and has less palate weight. Not quite at the level of the others in the vertical on …

1973 vintage

9/14 Good fruit and long-lasting finish but off balanced - best to lay down for a while and let back end round out. 88 pts.

1999 vintage

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Sterling Vineyards, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley

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