My company had its annual Holiday Tasting for the trade last night and I finally got a chance to taste the 99 Del Dotto Cabernet..... WOW!!
Great fruit, great color, big nose, and a wonderful mouthfeel. Clearly my favorite in the whole portfolio. It has been a while since I tasted a wine as wonderful as this one. A bit pricey, but we only get a few cases.
Tasting Notes:
Dark black colour, long slow legs, body thick in alcohol and glycerin.
Exotic nose of vanilla, black cherry, and berry.
Flavors of chocolate covered cherries and caramel, plums, creme brulee, with a hint of coffee, vanilla, and nutty spice.

Blend: 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc, 3% Merlot

Mike,

You've really gotta question what the heck Parker was tasting when he rated this an 87! Too bad CaveGirl had already run out by the time I made it to the Caves.

..wait just a minute...the 99 cab??? We still have a few cases left!

[ 10-23-2002, 01:46 AM: Message edited by: cave girl ]

Every year I am very surprised by the scores Parker and WS give Del Dotto. I have never had a cab (And I have had them all) from Del Dotto that I would say deserved less than 92pts. I am really surprised by what The David received in the ratings. Fine bottle of wine.

cave girl..... I'm on it.
My better wine shops will have it in shortly (if they know whats good for them).

...Mike...we still have the 99 cab available at the winery but our distributers may not have it. You can order it thru us directly depending on where you live.

winebrat,

that is where the relationship between winery and WS comes in.....

I would have to whole-heartedly agree with the majority here. Del Dotto (IMHO) is one of the most UNDER-RATED wineries in the Valley. Not only are the wines spectacular, but the service you get is beyond compare. We will be visiting Del Dotto this weekend in fact and I plan on picking up a few bottles. CHEERS to CaveGirl and her entire crew!!!

cave girl.... We still have 98 to sell.. trying to convince management to let us sell 99.
As far as shipping direct...
I am a distributor salesman...
Don't go there!

...yes Mike...thats why we ship direct depending on where you live. There aren't too many states we can ship to. Our customers usually take it with them. We had some customers a few months ago who flew their own plane into Napa airport. They had our calculaters out and were trying to figure out how much gas they would have to dump on the way back because of the weight of the wine. I think they were from your neck of the woods....scary....

Wino and I visited Cavegirl and tasted through a bunch of Del Dotto wines. I was very impressed by what we had -- and that was after drinking Staglin, Montelena, Shafer, Pride etc. all week. I think I remember buying a six-pack of the '99 Cab (lots of wine that day) -- great stuff.

I've had both the '97 and '99 Del Dotto many times each, and if you like the '99, try the '97 if you have it -- it's fantastic and even better (based on not just me but quite a few others in side-by-sides).

I also agree that DD is somewhat underrated, but SSSHHHHHHH!!! Let's keep it that way for awhile so I can still afford to buy some, not to mention attend their fantastic summer parties!

Cheers,
Tim

Cave Girl,

I wanted to say, too, that Del Dotto is underrated. Not only for the wine but for the specialized service that we received when visiting the caves recently. You and the crew went above and beyond. It certainly was a memorable tour.

Not only did we have spectacular wine, we made some friends and were very thankful for the wonderful restaurant recommendation (Fume-fantastic place). Thank you for everything!