1987 Monte Bello

The 1987 Monte Bello is exceptionally backward, even by Ridge's standards, and I would not dare contemplate drinking a bottle prior to 1997-1998. However, this is one of those profound mountain Cabernets that should last for 20-25 years. There is not much of it available as quantities produced from the Monte Bello Vineyard in 1987 were tiny. However, should you have the requisite patience to wait for up to a decade for this wine to shed its considerable tannic clout, then move quickly, as this will be one of the rarest of the Ridge Monte Bellos. Dark black/ruby, with a rich, ripe yet reticent bouquet of minerals, blackcurrants, and toasted oak, this wine is exceptionally concentrated, full-bodied, and extremely firm and closed. With airing, some blossoming flavors of licorice, blackcurrants, and vanillin emerge. The finish is long, but forbiddingly tannic. This is a large-scaled yet impeccably balanced wine for drinking during the first two decades of the next century.