A good friend decided to pull this late during a dinner party. Zero prep just PNP. Honestly sounds like something I would do after the tasting ends and the drinking begins.
Dense dark fruit. Rounded, balanced and nice length from start to finish. A bit tight on the nose with some heat out of the gate with zero treatment. Some pyrazines mixed with herbaceous. I'm guessing this bottle was killed before it really had a chance to flower which is too bad as this was my first experience with Harlan Estate. I was on the allocation list for a brief period of time and only purchased 16 which still rest in the cellar to this day.
Based on the limited experience I'm not sure that I can make sense if this is worth the hype. Considering the vintage this is an impressive showing regardless of the label. If I had to score I would give this a 94 but feel that it would have improved with a proper decant and different stem.
Club pours and hungry hungry hippo was the theme when this bottle hit the table. I felt inadequately prepared with my Zalto Universal. Lol...
Harlan Estate Vertical tasting (WSPC): Cool winter, due to heavy fog they were not fully biodynamic (starting converting on 2008), harvest mid-October to mid-November, 80% new oak, 12.000 btl, bottle open 12.00 and tasted 13.50 -/- The color is much denser. The wine shows freshness, black fruit, a touch warm, licorice, black cherry & currant, light in the nose and a character, fine oak frame, balanced. Palate showing again finesse, there is a touch of developing notes, some dried fruit, raisin, dried red currant notes, coffee, chocolate, alcohol heat, the tannins are a bit drying, medium body, medium finish, some toast notes in the nose too.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
needs time to open up, at least 2 hrs imho opened 2011 and 2009 this one is more fruity than '09, beautiful nose, nice integration, drinking well but has plenty of time to keep it on it's side
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Youthful nose and palate with ample amounts of fruit. Dark cherry and still a bit of oak yet to be integrated. Balanced though not as long as better vintages. Typical Harlan style with fine grained tannins. No hurry here.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Decanted one hour before service. In the glass, youthful inky red, nearly black. On the nose, plums, blueberries, and a high-toned note of honeysuckle. On the palate, initially relatively primary, with dark blue fruits leading the way, followed by secondary notes of forest floor, ground coffee, and graphite, with a layer of fine tannins making their appearance on a long finish. As the evening wore on, the secondary notes became more pronounced and better integrated with the fruit...I should have decanted this at 1pm, not at 5pm. Very elegant wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Deep appearance with rich fruit in the nose and flavor. Plenty of dark fruits in the nose, black cherries, black raspberries, plums, and currants, along with licorice, leather, earthiness, minerals, and a hint of mint. Flavor like the nose with blackberries, plums, currants, and some minerality. Well balanced, nice complexity, and a long finish. An excellent wine for the vintage. 94/95
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Third stop on our ninth day in Napa Valley is to Harlan Estate in Oakville. Last wine up is the Harlan Estate from 2011.
Medium ruby red with garnet edges. A touch green and savory on the nose leading to some herbal nuances, baking spices, and dark red berries. Solid acidity with medium plus tannins (7.5/10) and a medium plus body. Damp tobacco leaves on the palate with some anise, dark berries, forest floor and gravel. Long finish. Drink till 2024.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
PNP Deep dark red. Strong nose, lots of tobacco, black berry, lots of wood, lots of leather. Nose seems quite obtuse. Leather on nose. Alcohol filled chocolates flavor. The cocoa component is nice, but the alcohol is overwhelming. Too bitter in my opinion, and tannins are a little much. A bit herbal on nose. Mouth feel a bit light actually. A little disappointed in this wine for the price frankly. Also the wine felt a little disjointed.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Tasted at the WINEBID.COM 20th anniversary NYC tasting.
One of the great wines of the night. A wonderful expression of a modern Cali Cab despite my reading that it was a 2011 (not known as a very good year) and thinking .....WOW is this the first Harlan I should be experiencing ? Yet it drank quite smooth with ample fruits. Blackberry & cassis up-front with a leather coating mouth feel. Long finish with lingering notes of lead pencil.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Harlan ... what can you say? Excellent year after year, even in 2011. But IMO Hundred Acre Few & Far Between in the wine of the vintage at less than half the price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
1/6/2024 - MJP Hou TX Likes this wine: 94 Points
A good friend decided to pull this late during a dinner party. Zero prep just PNP. Honestly sounds like something I would do after the tasting ends and the drinking begins.
Dense dark fruit. Rounded, balanced and nice length from start to finish. A bit tight on the nose with some heat out of the gate with zero treatment. Some pyrazines mixed with herbaceous. I'm guessing this bottle was killed before it really had a chance to flower which is too bad as this was my first experience with Harlan Estate. I was on the allocation list for a brief period of time and only purchased 16 which still rest in the cellar to this day.
Based on the limited experience I'm not sure that I can make sense if this is worth the hype. Considering the vintage this is an impressive showing regardless of the label. If I had to score I would give this a 94 but feel that it would have improved with a proper decant and different stem.
Club pours and hungry hungry hippo was the theme when this bottle hit the table. I felt inadequately prepared with my Zalto Universal. Lol...
NV Ruinart BdB
18 Lail Georgia
16 Coup de Foundre 1.5L
09 Blankiet Paradise Hills
09 Blankiet Rive Driote
11 Harlan Estate
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comments (4)
12/13/2023 - Collector1855 wrote: 94 Points
Salon Ficofi Paris walkabout tasting and dinner, no detailed tasting notes. Young, a little closed still.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/3/2023 - Shugs_Claret wrote: 95 Points
Impeccably balanced and perfectly rounded. Dark fruits, persistent and a bright finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/3/2023 - kostaslonis wrote:
Harlan Estate Vertical tasting (WSPC): Cool winter, due to heavy fog they were not fully biodynamic (starting converting on 2008), harvest mid-October to mid-November, 80% new oak, 12.000 btl, bottle open 12.00 and tasted 13.50
-/-
The color is much denser.
The wine shows freshness, black fruit, a touch warm, licorice, black cherry & currant, light in the nose and a character, fine oak frame, balanced.
Palate showing again finesse, there is a touch of developing notes, some dried fruit, raisin, dried red currant notes, coffee, chocolate, alcohol heat, the tannins are a bit drying, medium body, medium finish, some toast notes in the nose too.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/13/2022 - SmokeTaint Likes this wine: 96 Points
needs time to open up, at least 2 hrs imho
opened 2011 and 2009
this one is more fruity than '09, beautiful nose, nice integration, drinking well but has plenty of time to keep it on it's side
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/18/2022 - Shugs_Claret Likes this wine: 93 Points
Youthful nose and palate with ample amounts of fruit. Dark cherry and still a bit of oak yet to be integrated. Balanced though not as long as better vintages. Typical Harlan style with fine grained tannins. No hurry here.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/18/2021 - Niagara wrote:
Not really holding up terribly well. Drink up.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comments (1)
1/17/2021 - jshufelt wrote: 94 Points
Decanted one hour before service. In the glass, youthful inky red, nearly black. On the nose, plums, blueberries, and a high-toned note of honeysuckle. On the palate, initially relatively primary, with dark blue fruits leading the way, followed by secondary notes of forest floor, ground coffee, and graphite, with a layer of fine tannins making their appearance on a long finish. As the evening wore on, the secondary notes became more pronounced and better integrated with the fruit...I should have decanted this at 1pm, not at 5pm. Very elegant wine.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/6/2020 - JJB007 Likes this wine: 96 Points
drinking perfect
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/1/2020 - facchair wrote: 90 Points
Hour decant, was very tight, fruity, unimpressive. At this price point, you expect better!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/18/2019 - buckeye76 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Deep appearance with rich fruit in the nose and flavor. Plenty of dark fruits in the nose, black cherries, black raspberries, plums, and currants, along with licorice, leather, earthiness, minerals, and a hint of mint. Flavor like the nose with blackberries, plums, currants, and some minerality. Well balanced, nice complexity, and a long finish. An excellent wine for the vintage. 94/95
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/4/2018 - Millennial Drinkers wrote: 93 Points
Third stop on our ninth day in Napa Valley is to Harlan Estate in Oakville. Last wine up is the Harlan Estate from 2011.
Medium ruby red with garnet edges. A touch green and savory on the nose leading to some herbal nuances, baking spices, and dark red berries. Solid acidity with medium plus tannins (7.5/10) and a medium plus body. Damp tobacco leaves on the palate with some anise, dark berries, forest floor and gravel. Long finish. Drink till 2024.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
5/5/2018 - steinersing wrote: 95 Points
quite intense for a sub-par vintage. bit of eucalyptus.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/11/2018 - RickyT12 Likes this wine: 92 Points
PNP
Deep dark red.
Strong nose, lots of tobacco, black berry, lots of wood, lots of leather. Nose seems quite obtuse. Leather on nose. Alcohol filled chocolates flavor. The cocoa component is nice, but the alcohol is overwhelming. Too bitter in my opinion, and tannins are a little much. A bit herbal on nose. Mouth feel a bit light actually. A little disappointed in this wine for the price frankly. Also the wine felt a little disjointed.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/8/2017 - BuzzzzOff Likes this wine: 95 Points
Stunner!!! Big, Cali Cab made us smile in Thailand!!! Exceedingly expensive, but tasted even yummier as someone else paid :-)
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/6/2016 - tomoem Likes this wine: 94 Points
Tasted at the WINEBID.COM 20th anniversary NYC tasting.
One of the great wines of the night. A wonderful expression of a modern Cali Cab despite my reading that it was a 2011 (not known as a very good year) and thinking .....WOW is this the first Harlan I should be experiencing ? Yet it drank quite smooth with ample fruits. Blackberry & cassis up-front with a leather coating mouth feel. Long finish with lingering notes of lead pencil.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
6/29/2015 - Niagara wrote: 94 Points
Harlan ... what can you say? Excellent year after year, even in 2011. But IMO Hundred Acre Few & Far Between in the wine of the vintage at less than half the price.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/20/2015 - wineholder Likes this wine: 97 Points
I finally found an epic 2011 I am going to revisit this vintage this wine is awesome.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment