1988 Napa Valley

Surprisingly, I’ve had a handful of beautifully expressive 1988 Napa Cabernet Sauvignons recently that are still going strong, including Château Montelena Estate, Chappellet, Dalla Valle, Spottswoode, Beaulieu Vineyard Georges de Latour Private Reserve, and Dominus. And the opulent, multi-layered 1988 Château Montelena Chardonnay rivals a lot of Burgundies for complexity and stamina.

It was a dry winter and spring, followed by a warm June into early July. Then the weather turned cool. Fortunately, the spring drought resulted in a smaller crop, so although the vintage was tracking late, those who could bring in ripe fruit before the October rains went on to make some tight-knit, elegantly styled wines. Others were not so lucky and suffered from dilution.

Perhaps because even the wines harvested before the rains were reticent in youth and on the delicate side, many critics entirely wrote off the vintage. And, let’s face it, it’s not a universally great year for Napa by any stretch of the imagination. But that a number of the wines have held their perfumed signatures to this day just goes to show—only time will tell.