2010 M-Squared "Monte Rosso Vineyard - Old Vine" Sonoma Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (Winery Direct Library Release)

When tasting through the vertical of M-Squared Monte Rosso Old Vine Cabs I was quite taken by the thread of similarity that tied the wines together, a sense of place if you will. Perhaps that essence of terroir shouldn't be a surprise from a vineyard as legendary as this. While the wines do show some nuances of vintage variation, I found commonality in all of them a briary, dark red fruit with mountain herbs and ferrous, rocky minerality. The 2010 is a wine of contrasts as the growing season was. The Summer started off very cool with lots of fog and overcast conditions. By August many growers across California were starting to wonder if the fruit was going to get fully ripe if the conditions persisted. Many chose to pull leaves and expose fruit to more direct sunlight in an effort to speed up ripening. And then, the typical late August Labor Day heat kicked in and ran through September and into meaning the harvest came thick and fast for many. This wine has powerful, ripe fruit, dried red currant, bramble, dark cherry even boysenberry. However, there are also interesting notes of dried herbs, tobacco, leather and woodsy spices, qualities I often associate with cooler climate grown Cabernet. It makes me wonder if these ancient vines didn't panic to ripen their fruit in that cool early summer, and the sprawling, head-trained canopies provided vital shade when the late season heat came on strong. Either way, a complex wine with interesting layers of flavor. Drink anytime from now until at least 2030.