1999 Cabs

Joseph Phelps Insignia 1999 Napa Valley was rated tops in the Press Democrat’s annual 10-Year Cabernet Sauvignon Retrospective.

Is a cabernet retrospective as suspenseful as the Oscars? Granted, there’s no paparazzi, limousines or stiletto heels.

But if you’re a wine lover, bagged bottles of the 1999s are plenty glamorous, and, yes, every bit as dramatic. What will the last vintage of the 1990s reveal? Which winery will grab the spotlight?

And the envelope, please?

Earning 4.5 out of a possible 5 stars, the winner of The Press Democrat’s recent 10-Year Cabernet Sauvignon Retrospective is the Joseph Phelps Insignia, 1999 Napa Valley, a muscular Bordeaux blend that’s dense, complex and jammy.

Other top wines include:

2nd — Shafer Hillside Select, Stag’s Leap District, Napa Valley Cabernet (4.5 stars)

3rd — Staglin Family Vineyard, 1999 Rutherford, Napa Valley Cabernet (4.5 stars)

4th — Duckhorn Vineyards, 1999 Napa Valley Cabernet (4.5 stars)

5th — Simi Reserve, 1999 Alexander Valley Cabernet (4 stars)

The 1999s capture the calm after the storm — literally. In 1998, Mother Nature was savage, with El Nino’s torrential rains and heat spikes. But in 1999, she was even-tempered by comparison.

“With great weather, the berries did develop more intensity,” according to Damian Parker, Phelps’ director of winemaking.

Craig Williams, the former winemaker at Phelps who also played a big role in producing the winning wine, agreed. “It was a truly remarkable year,” he said. “It was not marred by excessive heat, allowing the vine to actually keep flavor on par.”

The blind tasting of 30 cabernet sauvignons and Bordeaux red blends from Napa, Sonoma and Mendocino counties was climactic because it capped off a decade that is considered, overall, quite extraordinary. Would the 1999s stand up to the other vintages, particularly the three most revered, 1991, 1994 and 1997?

The 1999s were highly anticipated upon their release because 1998 was considered a poor vintage, according to Ben Pearson, buyer for Santa Rosa’s Bottle Barn.

“As I recall, the 1999s weren’t as massive as the ’97s, but it was an above average vintage.”

Pearson added that the 1998s were elegant, but they didn’t live up to California’s reputation for big, fat, rich wines. “Otherwise, the 1990s were a tremendous decade.”

When the 1999s were first released, the Wine Spectator rated Napa 97 and Sonoma 87 out of 100 points, calling the wines age-worthy with “tremendous depth, concentration and structure.” Wine critic Robert Parker of the Wine Advocate rated the vintage 88.

At their 10-year mark, most of the wines we sampled were drinking well and had youthful, vibrant fruit. Some could have been more complex, but the bright fruit was remarkable after a decade-long hibernation.

California cabernets with good balance and solid structure on release are expected to show well at their 10-year mark, emulating the great wines of Bordeaux that can last decades in the bottle. A balanced wine doesn’t have one particular flavor or characteristic overshadowing others.

Most of the wines in the tasting were cabernet sauvignons, with only five Bordeaux red blends in the mix. Phelps winemaker Parker said he suspects the blend is what gave the Insignia the edge.

What does a blend have over a straight cabernet? “Complexity of flavors,” he said. “Sometimes 2 plus 2 equals 5.”

Shafer Vineyards winemaker Elias Fernandez gives credit to the vineyard for his second-place win. “At least 80 percent or more of the wine’s flavor, texture, aroma — all the things that matter — come directly out of the vineyard. ... There’s nothing particularly magical we do in the cellar.”

Michelangelo once said the statue is inside the stone and it’s the job of the sculptor to find it. Fernandez said 1999 was like a world-class statue nearly completed. “All we had to do was polish it up a little bit. That would be my analogy for 1999.”

The scores of other wineries in the tasting:

Rated 4.5 stars: Sebastiani, Alexander Valley; Pride Mountain Vineyards, Napa Valley; Freemark Abbey, Bosche Napa Valley.

Rated 4 stars: Chateau Souverain, Alexander Valley; Jordan, Sonoma County; Laurel Glen, Sonoma Mountain Vineyard Reserve; Von Strasser, Diamond Mountain District, Napa Valley, Mt. Veeder, Napa Valley Reserve.

Rated 3.5 stars: Silver Oak, Napa Valley; Clos Du Bois, Briarcrest Vineyard, Alexander Valley; Franciscan Oakville Estate, Magnificat, Napa Valley Red Blend; Hess Collection, Napa Valley; Kenwood, Jack London Vineyard; Arrowood, Sonoma County Reserve Speciale; Mount Veeder Winery, Napa Valley Reserve; Ravenswood, Pickberry Vineyards, Sonoma Mountain Red Blend.