Last night I had the opportunity to taste something really interesting: a non-vintage Christian Brothers Napa Valley Cabernet.The wine was bottled in 1967, but did not list a vintage year. Christian Brothers commonly made multi-vintage blends, but this may have been their top of the line and they might have ignored the vintage out of modesty. I guess most of the grapes were from 1965 but there was no way to know for sure.
The bottle read "Select Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon" on the front label, and on the back it said the grapes were from "a hillside vineyard." Single-vineyard hillside Napa Valley wines today regularly sell for $150 or more, but this wine was probably about $2 on release, and WAIT till I tell you what it costs now (below).
A religious fraternal organization, Christian Brothers was a major force in Napa Valley in the 1960s, making a variety of very affordable table wines as well as brandy and sacramental wines. Their winemaker, Brother Timothy, frequently made public appearances on behalf of Napa Valley wines, giving a good-humored, pious face to the industry in a country that was just a few decades removed from Prohibition.
One of their winemaking facilities, Greystone, is now the impressive home of the Culinary Institute of America. The Christian Brothers had access to some great vineyards back and despite being a religious organization, they also had serious winemaking talent: Justin Meyer was a member of the order, and he had not yet left to found Silver Oak.
The 40-something wine was drinking great last night. Had I tasted it blind, I would have guessed it was aged Bordeaux, perhaps Pauillac. I also would have guessed that it was a bit younger -- maybe the early-mid '70s -- because there was still some pretty good cherry fruit, along with the characteristic flavors of age like leather and orange peel. The balance was outstanding. This was a wine that went fabulously with food, though I tried to clear my palate completely for each precious sip. Some older wines are more intellectual pleasures; this was a wine fully fit for drinking, and it disappeared quickly.
Nine of us enjoyed this wine with dinner at the CIA, bringing it home at last. I'm sure Brother Timothy, were he looking down from heaven, would have been happy to see the good cheer and fellowship his wine brought us. As Benjamin Franklin said, "Wine is constant proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."
The punch line is the price: My benefactor said she acquired this wine in the last month from K&L Wine Merchants for ... $15! I was going to race to the store in question but she said she wisely bought every last bottle. But it does make me wonder what other treasures lie forgotten in the far recesses of stockrooms.
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