The wine opened up quite a bit after decanting for an hour or so. Great tawny color, notes of sour cherry and raisins, long aftertaste. Will integrated tannins. An awesome bottle! — 9 months ago
A tasting of six aged white Rhônes, including 20 and 35-year-old Hermitages vs a Chapoutier Saint-Joseph Blanc (Les Granits) a 19-year-old Esprit from Tablas Creek, and a Calera Mount Harlan Viognier. This 2009 Chapoutier was the winner for me, and the group. — 2 years ago
Earlier this week, a rep for Crown Point wines hosted a tasting to show off a few of their newer releases. New to me, they are out of Santa Barbara and have the duo of Adam Henkel (former assistant winemaker at Harlan for 8yrs) and Philippe Melka (who came on starting with the ‘15 vintage) making the wines.
This wine is their Estate Selection, which is 73% cab, 16% malbec and 11% merlot. I believe this was the first vintage for this wine. It sports a very soft profile and is made in a riper style. Aromatically it smells of baked boysenberry, fig and mixed berry pie with milk chocolate chips. The ABV is around 15.2% and it shows here. Extracted on the palate with chocolate covered dark fruits, baking spices, nutmeg and Andes mint. — 7 years ago
Earthy, wild/native California herbs, touch of iron, beautiful, sense of the earth, stunning, salinity and depth and richness and complexity. Texturally beautiful, long, so complete, great balance. So good!! — 6 months ago
伊勢丹ワイン ピノノアール
カルラ — a year ago
The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Hilltop lifts from the glass with a peppery freshness, mixing hints of sage with chalk dust and blackberries. It's soothingly round and supple with ripe red and black fruits underscored by saline minerals as grippy tannins mount toward the close. This finishes structured with medium length, leaving the palate refreshed while maintaining youthful poise. (Eric Guido, Vinous, July 2024)
— 2 years ago
Earlier this week, a rep for Crown Point wines hosted a tasting to show off a few of their newer releases. New to me, they are out of Santa Barbara and have the duo of Adam Henkel (former assistant winemaker at Harlan for 8yrs) and Philippe Melka (who came on starting with the ‘15 vintage) making the wines.
The difference between this wine and the previous two is that this is their Cabernet (92%) with just a dash of merlot, petit Verdot, malbec and cab franc. Similar to the ‘15 Estate Selection in how this is big and dense but still harmonious. Rich and dark fruits with graphite, cassis, and mocha. Big tannins with a dark and compact core...blackberries, underripe blueberries, violets, and dusty cedar. — 7 years ago
Beautiful fruit on the nose. Medium bodied with bright acidity. Notes of vanilla on the finish. — 9 years ago
This is a solid wine at the $25 price point. Let it breath for about 20min and it should open up. Although thos was good, I still mich rather prefer a regular Mount Veeder Cab that is right around this price point. — 9 years ago
Delicate, a kiss of sweetness with an herbal note. Minerality, of the warm earth, a beauty and elegance, still very much alive. Texturally and structurally beautiful. For this vintage, he hit it out of the park! — 6 months ago
Once a year Wente drops off a case of new stuff as a thank you for partnering with them. Full disclosure: we grow Chardonnay for them. But I appreciate this families commitment to the community and though their wines are not on my regular drinking list, they are good affordable well made wines. — 2 years ago
A tasting of six aged white Rhônes, including 20 and 35-year-old Hermitages vs Chapoutier Saint-Joseph Blancs from Les Granits and a 19-year-old Esprit from Tablas Creek, Beaucastel's sister winery in Paso Robles, as well as one of the first great Viogniers to come out of California, the 2009 Calera Mount Harlan. The Tablas Creek held up well against these heavyweights, coming in second place. — 2 years ago
2016 vintage. Rambunctious. Decant if possible. A little chunky and needs some time to knit together but all the components are there. Power in spades. — 6 years ago
Great food and wine paired beautifully — 7 years ago
One of our favorites from Melville year in and year out...but not tonight. This is good - no doubt about that - has a wonderful elegance with hints of dried strawberry on the nose with a medium-bodied mouthfeel and a surprisingly persistent finish despite having a lot of weight in the mid-palate. But, surprisingly it is not in the same league as the Mount Eden Selection we had a while ago. All that being said, my feeling is that the 2011 Melville pinots are drinking perfectly right now, so pop ‘em if ya got ‘em! — 8 years ago

Pretty awesome for a 30yr old Cali Pinot. — 9 years ago
Kapyrick Wine
v19. Outstanding!!!. Golden amber color. Bold, saline, tropical fruit and toast nose. Fresh, creamy tropical fruit with hints of lime zest. Luscious soft oak finish. So good! — 6 days ago