Bone dry and utterly balanced, with deeply powerful, long-lasting flavors of blackberries and black currants and an intense, but integrated, coating of smoky oak. But it's also very tannic. Nothing soft about this wine. As fine a cellar candidate as any Mondavi Reserve in years. Should develop for 12, 15, even 20 years. *Cellar Selection*

The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve is deep, plush and voluptuous. Although the first signs of tertiary maturity are starting to set in, the 2007 has enough depth to drink well for another decade or so. This is not an especially elegant style – certainly not relative to today's wines – but all things considered, the wine has held up well. The heavily extracted, oaky style is a remnant of a prior era at Mondavi and Napa Valley more generally. (AG)

There's much to admire here and plenty to chew on, with the core serving up a mix of mocha-laced currant, raspberry, anise and cedar flavors. The substantial tannins are rich and present, but this has room to grow. (JL)