Mount Harlan Estate tasting at Calera

this rounds a swing thru some Duckhorn Portfolio properties…

the tasting featured the three estate white wines, and five (of six) estate Pinots. it took place in an elegant room, at an unhurried pace and accompanied by an ample platter of local charcuterie, cheeses, nuts and dried fruits – it was a lot of wine, after all!

• 2020 Calera Aligoté 88 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Mount Harlan

  pale straw colour and light body in the glass. it's quite fresh in the nose with white flowers, lemon, yellow apple and whiffs of herbs. in the mouth is light and linear with a vein of acidity highlighting the citric and green apple flavours. with some hints of minerality but not much complexity, this freshness carries thru to a moderate finish.
  
  good aperitif wine, and well, the choice for a Kir!
  
  13% AbV; small production (as i recall, only two rows are planted).

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• 2020 Calera Viognier Mount Harlan 91 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Mount Harlan

  yellow colour in the glass with visible viscosity. the nose has rich aromas of ripening stone fruit accented by a citrusy zest and whiffs of honeysuckle. the mouth is considerably fresher than that nose would suggest with a more noticeable streak of acidity that gives the peach and apricot notes a rather citric edge. nice layers peel off and reform in the unctuous texture of the wine that fades into the finish.
  
  sometime back, Calera started to switch the vinification style away from wood. this wine was fermented and aged in a concrete egg. it is noticeably different than, say the 2016. i look forward to tasting it with a bit more bottle age.
  
  14.5% AbV; also a small production (but not as small as the Aligoté).

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• 2020 Calera Chardonnay Mount Harlan 92 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Mount Harlan

  pale yellow in the glass and with medium body. the nose has classic notes of peach and apple with a passing whiff of vanilla, but also gives wisps of jasmine, lemon and rock salt. and it is that saline minerality that first hits the mouth and drives the palate as the fruit and citric layers wash over with a creamy but fresh texture. quite a bit of complexity there… and nice finish.
  
  first time tasting this wine, and it is a unique interpretation of the varietal far from the California Chard stereotype.
  
  14.5% AbV; fifteen months in french oak, 30% new

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our tasting wasn't entirely a horizontal as three different vintages were featured across five wines. while a true horizontal would allow one to more easily divine the vineyard differentials, the mixed approach allows for a great deal of that plus some "vertical" aspect to it.

on that basis, it seemed to me that the 2019s will come into their window earlier than the 2018s…

finally, as the Reed vineyard was not represented in the tasting, we were treated to a barrel sample of the 2020 Reed while in the cave.

• 2019 Calera Pinot Noir Mills Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Mount Harlan

  dark but translucent garnet in the glass with medium body. there was strong smokey mineral whiff in the nose that never totally went away, but dissipated enough to let notes of black tea, pepper, and baking spice mix with the strawberry and black cherry aromas. medium body in the mouth with concentrated but dark fruit attack, medium plus acidity, and quite a bit of stony minerality; spicy flavours and solid tannins round out the profile and carry thru a fairly long finish.
  
  this may just be entering its drinking window.
  
  14.5% AbV; 100% whole cluster; eighteen months in french oak (30% new)

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• 2019 Calera Pinot Noir Jensen Vineyard 93 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Mount Harlan

  transluscent ruby colour in the glass with medium body. strong smokey mineral whiff in the nose that dissipates enough to let the perfume thru: rose petals, blood orange, sous-bois and wisps of clove enhance the red cherry and pomegranate fruit notes. medium bodied in the mouth, it has a decidedly savoury character with green herbal notes mixing in with the fairly rich red and black fruit and spicy accents; noticeable acidity and polished tannins are present but less prominent than a mineral vein that carries thru to a nice long finish.
  
  quite young, but with good depth and elegance already. i would give this another couple of years to come together even more… and certainly, this can go at least for a decade. upside potential on the rating.
  
  14.5% AbV; 100% whole cluster; eighteen months in french oak (30% new)

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• 2018 Calera Pinot Noir de Villiers Vineyard 91 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Mount Harlan

  dark ruby and medium bodied in the glass. black fruits dominate the nose; accents of earth, wood and tobacco come thru as well. the same black fruits are notable on the palate, sprinkled with a good measure of savoury spice and herbal touches. tannins are firm and acidity is medium plus, as is the minerality. fruity and spicy long finish.
  
  i would leave this to lay down a bit longer for the tannins to better integrate. there is upside rating potential here.
  
  14.3% AbV; 100% whole cluster; eighteen months in french oak (30% new)

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• 2018 Calera Pinot Noir Ryan Vineyard 93 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Mount Harlan

  from the highest-elevation vineyard in the estate.
  
  medium ruby colour and medium body in the glass. a bright, floral and perfumed nose with rose petals and whiffs of violets amid the sous-bois and fresh red berries. in the mouth the fruit trends a little darker, but accented by fresh pomegranate, rhubarb, herbs and nutmeg. a strong tannic backbone is an equal match to the concentrated fruit and its bright acidity, which lingers thru the finish.
  
  there is very good balance and a lot of energy in this wine; but i do think a couple more years of rest will let the elements integrate even more.
  
  14.7% AbV (carried rather well); 100% whole cluster; eighteen month in french oak (30% new)

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• 2017 Calera Pinot Noir Selleck Vineyard 94 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Mount Harlan

  from the smallest lowest-yielding vineyard in the estate.
  
  dark garnet and medium body in the glass. the nose is ample with aromas of pomegranate, cranberry and red cherry and a myriad of accents: rose petals, juniper and pine, sous-bois and sandalwood. in the mouth is of medium-plus body and with appreciable concentration as the notes from the nose make it thru the palate in a display of remarkable depth. the texture is silky, with the fine grain of the tannins and the acidity providing good counterweight to the fruit. savoury and spicy in the long finish.
  
  this needs a little bit more to get into its drinking window, but already shows a lot of promise.
  
  14.7% AbV; seventeen months in french oak (30% new, 20% second use, the rest neutral).

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the Estate tasting at Calera is a generous and worthwhile experience with very knowledgeable guidance. it included a quick overview of the gravity-flow winery and a visit to the barrel cave dug into the limestone mountain.

i'd certainly recommend it.