Over the Hill

I recently told a regular that I've never really had a high-end aged wine that's gone/going over the hill. Being the gentleman that he is, he brought me a bottle of 1970 Freemark Abbey Cabernet Napa Valley, Bosche Vineyard. He warned us that the wine was past its prime and would fade in the glass within 20 minutes of opening.

We decanted to remove sediment. It was acutally a bit tight, but only for about 2 minutes. It quickly opened up and was an absolute charm for the next 8. After 15, it had maderized in the glass. To watch this wine fade like a old western cowboy riding into the sunset was a fun--albeit very sad--experiment.

Initial tasting notes said "Burnt earth, black tea, fig and dried cherry on the nose while the palate showed very little fruit, a hint maybe of blackberry and cola, but mostly forest floor and leaves. Gorgeous balanced mouthfeel with bright acidity and soft tannins"---Uh oh 5 minutes later, "cinnamon toast crunch nutmeg, nuts madiera type quality." Boo.