1974 Louis M. Martini Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection
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Tasting notes
Fully mature, with a vivid ruby hue and subtle bricking, the 1974 Cabernet Sauvignon Special Selection is drinking beautifully today, with evolved cherry fruits intermixed with leather, subtle mushroom, cedarwood, and dried flowers. Medium-bodied and nicely balanced, it has a round, layered mouthfeel, sweet tannins, and a good finish. It’s a classy, complex, and satisfying wine that sits firmly in the mature wine category. It’s not going to improve, but great bottles (and this is one) should hold nicely over the coming decade or so.
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Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
Mike Martini: With a warm growing season, minimal rain and an even-paced harvest, the 1974 vintage was probably the best year of the 1970s, next to 1970 itself. In those days, we picked grapes at around 22.5 to 23 brix to achieve an elegant expression of Cabernet. I ran the crush pad that year and crushed all the grapes, so I'm inclined to say that was the secret. However, some of the credit is owed to my dad as the wines were done in his style of fermenting in a combination of stainless and cement before aging in neutral old casks and redwood tanks for two years. Fruit from both Napa and Sonoma. Lots of mature aromas of undergrowth, old wooden furniture, mushrooms, becoming more peppery in the glass. Holding on really well for what was probably quite a simple wine. (JH)