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.
I found there to be a noticeable step up in quality between the ‘14 and this ‘15...maybe that was due to Melka coming on board at this point. Where this differs from the ‘14 is the added cab franc and petit Verdot. Smells a touch more herbaceous and crunchy instead of being a fruit bomb. It was also more chalky and dusty. Floral with potpourri and flowers give this better balance on the nose. The palate sports the whole fruit spectrum from red, blue and black but also has good acidity and tannin. Slightly savory finish of dark cocoa, peppercorns and cassis with underripe blackberries. Nice aging potential.
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.
I found there to be a noticeable step up in quality between the ‘14 and this ‘15...maybe that was due to Melka coming on board at this point. Where this differs from the ‘14 is the added cab franc and petit Verdot. Smells a touch more herbaceous and crunchy instead of being a fruit bomb. It was also more chalky and dusty. Floral with potpourri and flowers give this better balance on the nose. The palate sports the whole fruit spectrum from red, blue and black but also has good acidity and tannin. Slightly savory finish of dark cocoa, peppercorns and cassis with underripe blackberries. Nice aging potential.
Oct 18th, 2019
Happy Canyon of Santa Barbara, Central Coast, California, USA
