Wine and Spirits

Item Description

WINE- Diamond Creek Vineyards has produced truly memorable wines ever since its first vintage in 1972. The winery has 21 acres on three adjoining sites. Each site differs in exposure and soil composition and when Al Brounstein realized he had distinct vineyards, he decided to bottle under different names - Gravelly Meadow, Red Rock Terrace, Volcanic Hill and Lake Vineyard. A successful pharmaceuticals wholesaler in Southern California in the 1960s, Al purchased 70 acres of land on rugged Diamond Mountain in Napa Valley in 1968. Brounstein was inspired by the great wines of Bordeaux and had long dreamed of owning his own small vineyard and winery and producing lovely Bordeaux-styled wines. Al's dream was realized early on and the reputation of his ultra-high quality wines continues today. After more than 30 years, Diamond Creek's wines are among the best Cabernets ever made in California.

At a recent Diamond Creek Retrospective Tasting sponsored by the Central Coast Wine Classic, Diamond Creek wines from the vintages of 1974 through 1990 were tasted. The conclusions were amazing. The best Diamond Creeks in the 1970s were drinking beautifully at 25-30 years of age and showing no sign of decline. The wines of the 1980s have turned out beautifully. All of the wines tasted were quite remarkable, most of them far too young for consumption now and none of them showing any sign of aging other than a faint amber edge on a handful of the oldest wines. The wines were all lovely, rich, balanced and demonstrating great longevity.

If you want high alcohol, overripe fruit bombs, Diamond Creeks are not for you. But if you like wine that ages gracefully and gains complexity, it is your wine. Similar to Chateau Latour, Diamond Creek wines require many years of bottle age to reach their current state of perfection. The wines are true vins de garde.

Don't pass up this lot. It's not easy to obtain older Diamond Creek wines, especially not well-cellared bottles. These are real and very rare gems.

-One 750ml bottle each of 1987, 1988 and 1989 Diamond Creek Vineyards Gravelly Meadow

-One 750ml bottle each of 1988, 1989 and 1990 Diamond Creek Vineyards Red Rock Terrace

-Two 750ml bottles each of 1988, 1989 and 1990 Diamond Creek Vineyards Volcanic Hill

Item Special Note

Recipients must be 21 years of age or older.