‘I wish I was still playing': What Joe Montana really thinks about ‘Rise of the 49ers'

It was just like old times: Jesse Sapolu blocking for Joe Montana.

Those were the headliners during part two of a three-day "Celebration of Champions" that featured no less than five parties at Gold Bar Whiskey's headquarters in an old naval aircraft hangar in Alameda.

At a time when there are upwards of 400 Super Bowl-related events in the Bay Area leading up to the game on Sunday, Feb. 8, these events managed to draw thousands by catering to the old-school fans who still idolize the five-time Super Bowl champions of the 1980s and '90s.

"It makes me a little bit sad because I go back in time and I wish I was still playing," Montana, the Hall of Fame quarterback who led the San Francisco 49ers to its first four titles, admitted to the crowd on Friday, Feb. 6. "You know what's sad? We should be playing this weekend. I still think (the 2025 Niners) were good enough to be here this weekend, right? 

"Looking forward to the game, but having more fun today than I will Sunday."

Sapolu, a center and guard who blocked for Montana on three of those title teams and won a fourth blocking for his successor Steve Young, arrived earlier to warm up the crowd. Last month, Sapolu was named as a 2026 inductee into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame alongside former San Francisco Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford, Olympic gold medal swimmer Missy Franklin, gold medal sprinter Eddie Hart and Cal rugby coach Jack Clark.

He is also a cofounder of the Polynesian Pro Football Hall of Fame, and son Roman Sapolu just joined the coaching staff of 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.

But he told the Chronicle he was thrilled that another classic 49er he blocked for, running back Roger Craig, was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame at the NFL Honors at the Palace of Fine Arts on Thursday, Feb. 4.

"We're so happy for Roger, it's been a long time coming and hopefully they'll show him some love always," said Sapolu, who added that he believes many of the individual players on those Niner championship teams are still underappreciated.

"We were 5-0 (in Super Bowls) and dominated," he said. "The Buffalo Bills (who went 0-4 in the '90s) almost have as many guys (in the Hall of Fame), or maybe more than we do."

Gold Bar has been the official whiskey of the 49ers for about six years, said Sam Thumm, the distillery's director of marketing and partnerships. This is its third year of partnering with Montana, who helped develop a "Golden Joe" version of its Double Gold whiskey mule.

The Montana and Sapolu appearances were part of a FanFest, which featured whiskey and alcohol choices, food trucks and the opportunity to test football skills.

The festivities at the Alameda distillery - Gold Bar also has a smaller spot on Treasure Island - began Thursday, Feb. 4, with a concert headlined by rapper 2 Chainz, which filled the converted hangar and even spilled outdoors - about 2,000 attended.

Another FanFest is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 7, kicking off at 10:30 a.m. with a youth football skills and drills session free (with registration at goldbarwhiskey.com) for children ages 7 to 13. Former 49ers Jeff Garcia, Tom Rathman, and Merton Hanks are scheduled to attend. The evening's party is set to be led by hip-hop artist Travis King.

Montana, Sapolu and the rest of the Niners from that era are back in the national spotlight with the release this week of AMC's limited docuseries "Rise of the 49ers."

Montana admitted that he wasn't looking forward to watching the series - "I usually don't like looking back," he said - but found himself enjoying it.

"I actually watched the whole thing and thought they did a pretty good job," Montana told the crowd, adding that he has reunited with many of the players featured in the documentary during Super Bowl week.

"It's nice because we got together with some of the teammates in the last couple of days and we're still telling lies about how good we were," Montana said with a smile.

This article originally published at ‘I wish I was still playing': What Joe Montana really thinks about ‘Rise of the 49ers'.