Being very selective in both the vineyard, and later in the winery, was the key in 1998. Vineyards had to be picked cluster by cluster, not block by block or even vine by vine. I chose to use lots from our St. Helena Home, Chabot and Tre Colline vineyards as the core of the wine because they had the best depth and complexity. The cool vintage and lingering clouds on Howell Mountain during harvest made it a challenging year up there - I didn't get the consistent richness through all lots of Bancro...

Rating: 91/100 - As reviewed by Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar on May-01

Rating: (87-90) - As reviewed in Wine Advocate # 126 on Jan-00

Rating for United States-California: 85 (slightly worse than average year)<br/><br/>Drinkability: drink now<br/>