It had been several years since I last tasted the ’78 Diamond Creek Volcanic Hill cabernet and the wine is cruising along beautifully and almost getting ready for primetime drinkingalmost! This is clearly one of the greatest wines ever produced from this estate and it is really still just a touch too young for primetime drinking, but it is getting close and will be absolutely magical once it fully blossoms. The deep, complex and truly superb nose soars from the glass in a mix of cassis, dark berries, meaty tones, cigar ash, a great base of minerality, a touch of soy and a gentle base of road tar. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, complex and very, very deep at the core, with superb focus and grip, outstanding acidity and stunning length on the ripely tannic and flawlessly balanced finish. It really seems like I underrated this brilliant wine the last few times I tasted it! One of the iconic cabernets of this legendary era in California history. 2017-2050+.

Last Tasted 12/91One of the most impressive wines I have ever tasted from this tiny winery in northern Napa Valley the 1978 Volcanic Hill Cabernet Sauvignon reveals an opaque ruby/purple color that is followed by a wine with a stunning bouquet of sweet jammy red and black fruits toasty oak damp earth and herbs. Splendidly concentrated and massive on the palate with gobs of tannin glycerin and extract this phenomenal bottle of California Cabernet is just beginning to exhibit signs of reaching full maturity. Drink it over the next 12-20 years.

Remains a dense chewy richly flavored wine packed with earthy leathery currant spice and mineral flavors. Lingers long with the kind of finish that suggests it could go another three five maybe 10 years with ease.--1978 California Cabernet retrospective. Drink now through 2008. 503 cases made. –JL