Saturday Night – Happy Birthday Jan! – Part 3

For the main course we had Beef Tenderloin and grilled shrimp with Béarnaise sauce with sides of baby red potatoes and sugar snap peas.  I paired this with a 2001 Robert Mondavi “Napa Valley” Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon and a 2004 Altair (Cab blend from Chile).

e have reviewed the Altair before (It had a 90.5 rating which puts it on the Zippy Sauce Top Ten Reds list) so I will get into more depth with the Mondavi.

The Mondavi had a big wonderful nose of cherry, nutmeg, eucalyptus, leather, loam, Porcini mushroom and clove.  Mick absolutely loved the nose on this wine… he wants to figure out how to make this nose into an Air freshener scent so he can be around it 24/7.  Tasting the Mondavi, it starts with cherry, raspberry, cocoa, and finishes with a green pepper taste.  The structure on this wine is perfect; lovely fruit, good acidity, super fine tannin and the alcohol doesn’t come through as overbearing; in short an awesome Cabernet Sauvignon.    It was a good pairing with the food but the Altair was slightly better.   The Mondavi on the other hand was a much better wine on its own than the Altair.  The Altair was much more tannic and that was the main reason it worked slightly better with the food.  I just wish I had another bottle of the Mondavi on the rack but unfortunately it was my last bottle.

Here is the group rating for the wine -Mick – 93, Mark – 91, Kathy – 92, Amy – 90, Overall – 91.5

Here is the LCBO information on the wine –

ROBERT MONDAVI RESERVE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2007

VINTAGES 670463
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 139.95
Made in: California, USA
By: Icon Estates
Release Date: Feb 4, 2012
Wine, Red Wine
14.0% Alcohol/Vol.
Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon
Sweetness Descriptor: XD - Extra Dry

Description  - James Laube of the Wine Spectator gave this wine a rating of 95, and designated it as a Collectible. (Sept. 30, 2010) .

Tasting Note  - The full-bodied, powerful, pure 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve is another outstanding effort revealing notes of spring flowers, toasty oak, creme de cassis, licorice, and graphite. One would have to go back to the 1990, 1991, 2001, or 2002 to find a Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve this impressive. The 2007 should evolve for 20-25 years. Score - 95+. (Robert Parker Jr., erobertparker.com, Dec. 2009)

* Note the LCBO listing is for the 2007 vintage and not the 2001 reviewed here… but Robert Parker did mention it in comparison to the 2001 vintage :)

The 91.5 overall group rating puts this wine firmly on the Zippy Sauce Top Ten Reds.  I will be picking up some of the 2007 as if it is remotely close to the 2001 it is well worth the price.

Mick grilled the Filets and the Shrimp while I made the Bearnaise, Potatoes and Sugar Snap Peas and I would like to thank him for doing an amazing job on grilling both items.

Click here for Part 4