As the weather turns cooler and the leaves begin to fall, red wine season is upon us once again. We delight in this time of year when we can pull a bottle of wine from our cellar and enjoy drinking it next to a roaring fireplace. A few days ago, we did just that. We had the great pleasure of experiencing a bottle of 1972 Heitz Cabernet Sauvignon Martha's Vineyard over a dinner of slow roasted filet mignon surrounded by potatoes and carrots. We are real lovers of old back-vintage Cali, particularly Mondavi and Heitz. Even being in the wine business, it's not every day that we get to experience these special bottles. They are quite the treat.

The irony was that we tried this bottle at almost the same time NY Times wine writer, Eric Asimov, authored an article about the longevity of back-vintage Cali wines and posed the question as to whether new California wines will stand the test of time like their older counterparts. Something he said, struck a chord with us. "Personally, I long for the old days, when Napa cabernets had an elegance and grace that I rarely find today. Some recent wines recall the older ones, or at least modern versions of them: Mayacamas, Corison, Dominus, Frog's Leap, Heitz and Smith-Madrone, just to name a few." I understand I'm in the minority, and I don't mean to be nostalgic, or to overly romanticize the past. - Eric Asimov, "Enjoying Cabernet of a Certain Age"

Well, if Eric Asimov is in the minority on his opinion of back-vintage Cali Cabs, we're right there with him and aren't afraid to admit it. As we read through his article, the word "Heitz" leapt from the page. There it was - one of our favorite wines that we rarely see mention of anymore. In our opinion, we've never thought Heitz received its due credit despite being one of the best made Napa Cabs ever made.

1972 isn't known for being a great California vintage, but super winemakers somehow found a way - then and now - to make incredible wine in almost every vintage they bottle. As Eric Asimov mentions, many of the older, back vintage Cali wines prove that they are age-worthy. The '72 Heitz Martha's fits right into this group, even with almost 40 years of age. Upon opening, the color was a beautiful, ruby red with just the slightest hint of amber around the edge of the glass when tilted. The nose was very aromatic and through off hints of smoke and saddle leather. The signature mark of almost any Heitz we've ever tasted (and that's a lot) is the notes of eucalyptus it reveals on the nose and palate. The same could be detected in this bottle of '72 - the eucalyptus and earth notes still powered through. The wine actually got much better and picked up a little weight after the first hour. Unfortunately, at this point there was very little left. It is a very elegant wine that has aged extremely well. You may be surprised to hear this, but '72 Heitz Martha's still has a lot of life left in it. Good pedigree and well-made back-vintage Cali wines were built for the long haul.

Recommendation: Back-vintage Cali is getting increasingly difficult to locate, especially the wines of the top winemakers. Subscribe to our email lists to get immediate notifications of our cellar acquisitions where you will find a handful of these legends still available. https://www.sokolin.com/cs/Signup-for-Subscriptions.aspx

Our Score - 95 Current
Drinkability - A