1999 Monte Bello $775.00

Size: 3L

1999 Monte Bello, bottled March 2001

72% cabernet sauvignon, 25% merlot, 2% cabernet franc, 1% petit verdot

Vineyard Production: 166 tons from 105 acres

Selection: 42%

In most California vineyards, yields were cut by a cold, rainy spring. At Monte Bello, where it was colder still,
flowering and set were put on hold. When summer finally came, the clement weather allowed a perfect set. Even after severe thinning, yields were two and a half tons per acre, equaling 1997's record. We harvested the separate parcels from the end of October through mid-November, as they ripened. In this vintage, fermentations destined for in-barrel malolactic were started with selected yeast; the rest — including all malolactics — were natural. Ninety-three percent of the wine was racked to air-dried american oak and — as part of our ongoing comparison — seven percent to the best french oak. In February, we chose twenty-three of the thirty-six parcels for the Monte Bello. A conjunction of intense black fruit, firm acid, and well-integrated tannin has produced one of the finest vintages of an unusual decade. Balanced and approachable as a young wine, this lovely Monte Bello will develop beautifully with ten to fifteen years of
bottle age. PD (1/01)

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