Freddy R. Troya

9.5

Monticello Vineyards – Corley Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon – 2000
Napa Valley – California, USA 🇺🇸

Overview
Crafted by Chris Corley, winemaker and co-owner of the Corley Family Vineyards, this 2000 Corley Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is a testament to Napa Valley’s age-worthiness. Produced in less than 500 cases, it hails from a near-perfect growing season that made Vintage 2000 a standout year for red wines across Napa. Two and a half decades on, it remains vibrant, layered, and refined, an icon of both terroir and winemaking.

Aromas & Flavors
Concentrated red berry fruit, blackcurrant, cherry compote, intertwined with notes of dark chocolate, baking spices, cedar, and a touch of tobacco. Secondary and tertiary notes of leather and earth reveal its graceful evolution.

Mouthfeel
Lusciously textured, full-bodied, and elegantly structured. Tannins are still firm but beautifully integrated, carrying the fruit and spice into a long, enduring finish.

Food Pairings
Best with celebratory pairings: dry-aged ribeye, braised short ribs, truffled mushroom risotto, or even on its own as a meditation wine.

Verdict
A classic Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon that proves great vintages and craftsmanship can stand the test of time. Silky, structured, and profound, this bottle is living history in a glass.

Did You Know?
The 2000 vintage in Napa Valley was marked by a long, even growing season with mild weather, ideal conditions that helped produce wines with ripe fruit, balanced acidity, and excellent tannic structure, now showing beautifully after 25 years.
— 8 months ago

Sean

9.2

Drank it with a French guy who said it was great. Good enough for me! — 4 years ago

Ron from VA

9.3

Yes, this is east coast - not central coast. Stunning build could fool anyone this is not Cali-quality! Form is simple: Malo/Lees = creamy + Rounded edges. But the palate is so synced with the mouthfeel that it is a seamless build. Meyer lemon creme-brûlée set in a floral Ramekin…one of the very best in recent memory for me. Paired with a tarragon butter Red Rainbow Trout (Fresh from Idaho) and family grown sautéed squash & baked potato….winner-winner, PTL!! Sure, this wine is not a mineral sonnet, but it did the Slam in Style! — 5 years ago

Kelley Raymond

9.2

Really enjoyed the balance of fruit and oak - good for a cooler day when you still want a white. Not ideal summer drinking wine — 5 years ago

Rhonely Boy

9.2

100% Viognier, three week skin contact.

Amazing, floral apricot nectar.

First Virginia wine, and from the Monticello AVA. Fan for life, Good job, more please!
If I wasn’t being a host on T-Giving, would have been more involved and analytical.

“The grapes are destemmed and gently crushed into an open-top oak puncheon. During fermentation, a daily punch-down is performed for three weeks until being pressed off the skins. Malolactic fermentation occurs during the aging period in neutral oak barrels.” — 6 years ago

Ron from VA

9.2

This is ACTUALLY the Mountain Plains White Blend. First vintage for this 3 Portion blend of Petit Manseng/Vio/Chard. 18 mons on barrel - while the tastes is hugely obtuse right now, the mouthfeel is wonderful. I have 1 more bottle and think another 2 years in bottle will make it sing. Nice effort Matthieu. — 6 years ago

Michael Patrone

9.0

Soft tannins. Cherry. — 6 years ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.3

Monticello Vineyards – Cabernet Sauvignon – 2019
Tietjen Vineyard, Rutherford, Napa Valley – California, USA 🇺🇸

Overview
Crafted from the iconic Tietjen Vineyard in Rutherford, this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon is a benchmark example of Napa’s famed “Rutherford Dust.” The vineyard’s gravel, loam, and sandy soils, influenced by both volcanic and marine deposits, contribute to its distinctive character. Produced in limited quantities, this reserve bottling exemplifies elegance and terroir-driven depth.

Aromas & Flavors
Lush red and black berry fruit with cassis at the core, layered with sweet vanillin oak, caramel, and subtle spice. Rutherford’s earthy dust signature emerges with grace, adding complexity and balance.

Mouthfeel
Rich and full-bodied, yet polished. Fine-grained tannins wrap the fruit in elegance, with a long, supple finish that lingers with both freshness and finesse.

Food Pairings
Perfect alongside grilled ribeye, lamb chops, truffle risotto, or aged gouda.

Verdict
An iconic Rutherford Cabernet—textbook definition of power meeting refinement. Age-worthy yet approachable now with proper decanting. Cheers!

Did You Know?
The phrase “Rutherford Dust” was coined by André Tchelistcheff, Napa’s legendary winemaker, to describe the unique terroir-driven, fine powdery tannins and earthy nuance that define Cabernet Sauvignon from Rutherford. — 8 months ago

Ron from VA

9.2

Insane white blend with mega elegant mouth feel, and a merger of three talented individual voices. The profiles of Chardonnay, PetitManseng, and Viognier — 2 years ago

Andrea Silverstein

9.5

Very rich, full bodied with tobacco notes — 4 years ago

Pablo Cetlinski

10

On of the undiscovered single vineyard Cabs of Napa. Bordeaux finesse and Napa deepness. — 5 years ago

JJ Collins

10

Bold. Beautiful. Delicious. — 6 years ago

"Odedi"

9.0

This is a very nice Cabernet Franc from Virginia. Fruit forward with a nice mouthfeel and nice complexity.

Showing red and blue fruits with wood, spices, earth, light vegetables, tobacco leaf, spices, cocoa and coffee.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity.

Very enjoyable by itself or with food. Tangy and easy drinking.

I had it a few months ago, and this time I gave it a light chill and had it by the pool.

Only 12.4% alcohol by volume, which is really nice to see.

90 points.

$35. — 6 years ago

"Odedi"

9.1

King Family Vineyards Mountain Plains 2015, Virginia

Time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday. Here's a delicious one from Virginia.

Dark ruby in color with a wide reddish/ brick rim.

Fruity nose of blueberries, black plums, black currants, vanilla, oak, licorice, chocolates, earth, coffee, diet cola, light vinaigrette, herbs and peppercorn.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with blackberries, black currants, plums, cooked cherries, cola, oak, vanilla, herbs, spices, dark chocolates, coffee, licorice, vinaigrette, tobacco and peppercorn.

Tangy finish with soft tannins and tangy cherries.

This 5 year old Bordeaux blend from Virginia is very tasty. Nicely balanced with a nice mouthfeel and a tangy finish. Soft, gentle and fruit forward. A good quality wine.

I have had the 2016 not too long ago and this 2015 vintage has more of an old-world feel, especially after letting it open up for a while.

Good by itself or with food and needs an hour to open up. Only after 3 hours of airtime, tannins show up and bring in more structure. So be patient.

Very tasty and interesting.

I paired it with cheeses and olives.

A blend of 40% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Franc and 20% Petit verdot. A small production of only 2,928 bottles. Numbered. This is bottle 2,062.

14% alcohol by volume.

91 points.

$70. — 6 years ago

Matthew Cohen

9.4

N: elegant blackberry. Graphite.

P: dense. Blackberry. Amazing.

Mosaic $30 btg

Monopole 2 acres — 9 months ago

Gage Orion

9.2

Fantastic bottle on this semi warm late spring day watching a polo match at kings family winery in Crozet, Virginia! — a year ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.2

Originally founded in 1980 as Monticello Vineyards, Corley Family Napa Valley is a family run winery. Deep Ruby with aromas of rich berry fruit, floral and big spice. On the palate flavors of blackberry and blueberry with warm vanilla oak, tobacco, cacao and earthy cinnamon. Fine chewy tannins, long finish ending with fruit, spice, vanilla oak and earthy notes, will still develop. A nice fillet mignon with mushroom gravy will go well with this big wine. — 3 years ago

Ron from VA

9.2

It’s just like VA to build another unique format to distinct varietal like SB. 10 months in oak :) the attack is more lime juice with tropical grass highlights. The focal point though is the TEXTURE/MOUTHFEEL. I just adored the weightiness and heft - the creaminess amplified the slight vanillin of the oak. I will gladly get another bottle for the cellar - let’s see what it does in 2 years! — 5 years ago

JKT

9.2

Another surprise of an unknown old style Cab. Might be first vintage of Jay Corley Monticello Vineyard in Oakville Knoll? Said to go for lighter style “dinner wine” which is on the mark. 12.5% ABV! Old school or what? Not just alive but lively and lovely with all that ripe prune fruits and earth and leather. held up very well in Eto over four days. Upping to 9.2. PS yes it is the first vintage of Monticello Vineyard and available as library wine on their site for $210! Shout out to Ira Schwartz's metaphor in his post on a '70 Mayacaymus Zin as pure joy of dancing with ones grandma, this one is like dancing with grandmother who trained as a ballerina and still has the style and posture! Amazement now laced with Heh heh value find satisfaction. AA14. — 5 years ago

"Odedi"

8.9

This is a nice and light Cabernet Franc from Virginia. Showing red and blue fruits with earth, honeysuckle, chocolates, oak, vegetables and spices.

Light ruby in color with medium intensity.

Very pretty nose, sweet and flowery.

Medium bodied with medium acidity.

Good right out of the bottle., light and airy. Would be nice to revisit it in a couple of years.

A good food wine that I paired with a charcuterie board of meats and cheeses olive crackers.

12% alcohol by volume.

89 points.

$28. — 6 years ago