Bond Melbury Napa Valley 2001

Bond Melbury Napa Valley 2001 is a profound Cabernet Sauvignon from Bill Harlan's single-vineyard project in the western hills of Napa Valley, California, evoking Pauillac-like intensity from Melbury's rocky mountain terroir.

Critic tasting note: (2001 vintage)

"Has stunning fruit, for starters. Sheer, pure, concentrated nose of cassis and cherry. Subtle oak in the background, lending vanilla, toast and caramel nuances. Fabulous texture and weight, fine as velvet. Magnificently lush, full-bodied. Fantastic finish. Drink now through 2015." - Wine Enthusiast (95/100)

Robert Parker The Wine Advocate (98/100)

"The 2001 Melbury (a dead ringer for Pauillac) has an opaque blue/purple color and an extraordinarily sweet nose of charcoal, lead pencil shavings, cedarwood, blackcurrants, licorice and spice box. Full-bodied, with great intensity, purity and texture, this is a wonderfully dense, full-throttle wine that is still an adolescent and likely to stay one for at least another 5-7 years. Look for it to age gracefully well past 20-30+ years.

As long-time readers know, this is the brainchild of Harlan Estate’s Bill Harlan, who has signed the owners of these well-placed vineyards in selected microclimates in Napa Valley to long (quarter of a century) contracts. In the first decade, he has expanded the number of vineyard holdings to five separate wines in 2011, all made by the Harlan Estate winemaking team of Bob Levy and consulting enologist Michel Rolland. There were only three cuvees in 2001—from an 11-acre site on the western Oakville hillsides near Harlan Estate, the Vecina, St. Eden, an 11-acre stony knoll north of the Oakville Crossroad with a northern exposure, and from the steep slopes just north of Lake Hennessy with an eastern and southeastern exposure, east of Rutherford, the Melbury. Since these fabulous 2001s were made, two other great vineyards have been added to the Bond portfolio. These are Quella, which is a nine-acre vineyard in the eastern hills of northern Napa Valley, planted on white volcanic ash called Tufa, and Pluribus, which is a high-elevation vineyard planted on steep slopes of Spring Mountain with a northern and easterly exposure. All three 2001s showed phenomenally and are still very young wines, with at least 15 to 20 more years of upside potential. In fact, in a cold cellar, these wines probably have 40 or more years of aging potential, but few of us will be able to wait that long to see how they taste." - Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.

Tasting Profile

Opaque blue/purple hue with aromas of charcoal, lead pencil, cedar, black currants, licorice, spice box, minerals, exotic herbs, date, and iodine. The full-bodied palate delivers sappy concentration, lush black raspberry, bitter cherry, tobacco, and extremely fine tannins buried in fruit.

Key Traits

• Body: Dense, full-throttle with great purity, texture, and impressive mounting finish.

• Aging: Still youthful with 20-40+ years potential (98+ RP, 94 AG, 94 WS); pairs with prime rib, game, or aged Cheddar.

• Terroir: Mountain vineyard yields superconcentrated power and delineation at peak now through 2040+.