Buehler?... Buehler?... Buehler?...

 Sorry, I couldn't resist that beginning. My wife says it every time she sees the bottle on our counter and it never gets old. Buehler winery, located way up the hill on the base of Howell mountain is a sight to behold. The century old barn, someday slated to be turned into the tasting room, is a wow. The view of a shimmering beautiful Lake Hennessey hundreds of feet below takes your breath away. And the wine, ah the wine. What a perfect compliment to the scenery while visiting Buehler Vineyards.

 Tonight we are tasting the 2005 Buehler Napa Valley cabernet sauvignon. The wine is a bargain compared to other Napa mountain grown wines especially considering its pedigree. It shows dark cherry and plum, as well as cola and spice. A delicious cabernet that will drink well until 2014 (according to my rules) and 2020 according to the winery. My best advise would be to buy all you can find and enjoy it over the next couple years. I have had the opportunity of visiting with John Buehler at his winery and would highly suggest this visit if you ever have the opportunity.  The proprietor knows how to entertain almost as well as he knows how to make wine.

I Will Blog about No Wine Before it's Time 

 I wish that were true, yet I continue to save wines past their prime. Fine wine does not age as well as Beatles Albums; it is probably closer to milk in that regard. I recently tested my "ten year rule" for California wine along with my "best guess" rule with French Bordeaux.

The contestants:

Chateau Talbot 1993

Caymus Vineyards 1999

 While Caymus falls right into my ten year rule for drinking California wines, Chateau Talbot was drinking at sixteen years old (or young) for Bordeaux. 

The Talbot was tasted with a "wine aficionado" friend who was thrilled to death to taste the sixteen year old Fourth growth Bordeaux with his tasting colleague. It started out bad with a cork that was moldy and fell apart while opening. Being consummate professionals we managed to get the wine from the bottle without too much trouble. Surprise! The wine was still good! The old Talbot still showed signs of fruit and tannins that told us the wine would continue to age. This should not be too surprising considering the Saint-Julien wine is comprised of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, and the remaining Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. The French create their Bordeaux to age. The price they fetch should allow the consumer to enjoy now or twenty years from now.

The 1999 Caymus was exactly what I expected with my California ten year rule of thumb. I would have given two bottles of 1993 Talbot for one bottle of 1999 Caymus five years ago, even though the Talbot is generally double the retail price. 1999 Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon has faded away. This is such a bummer, but a lesson I continually need to remind myself. If you have any 1999 Caymus left drink now! While I generally prefer California Cabernets to Bordeaux's, if it ever comes to the day that I can collect more than we can consume, I will probably have to start collecting a few more Bordeaux's to drink in our golden years.