Sipping Fine Wine

9.0

Located in the limestone-rich Gavilan Mountains, east of Monterey. Josh Jensen planted Calera's first 23 acres of Pinot Noir in 1975. De Villiers, planted in 1997 on east-facing slopes high on Mt. Harlan. Third year of drought conditions lowered the yield in ‘14, aged for 20 months in new French oak (30% new). Intense aromas of dark berry fruits with rustic spice. Palate shows tart blackberry and dark cherry flavors with smoky tobacco, oak and subtle spice. Tight tannins, lingering complex ending, very nice. — 5 years ago

Jim McCusker

9.2

An interesting wine from Eric Jensen at Booker. The primary varietal is tempranillo, but only at 35%: the balance is petit verdot, syrah, and cab! Makes it a bit difficult to describe - lots of different aromatics on the nose - but dominated by primary red and black fruits (somewhat surprising given its age). Full bodied on the palate with good balance. My only complaint is that the wine seems a bit unfocused - doesn’t seem to know where it’s going. I suspect that had we opened this a couple of years ago (or a couple of years from now), the story would have been different. But these are minor details: this is still a terrific, enormously enjoyable wine! — 6 years ago

with Vanessa

Rob Mayes

9.0

Had the privilege of meeting Eric Jensen last night and barrel tasting his wines. Upon finishing, he offered us his cabin in the vineyard to spend the night. Woke up this morning in the middle of 60 planted acres with a thick fog blanketing the roiling hills. Heaven. — 7 years ago

Scott Rowe

9.3

Heemskerk Tassy brilliance.
Elegantly refined. An eye catcher. — 8 years ago

Julia Weinberg

9.4

Lazy weekend perfection. Smitten with @Johanna Jensen & @Jack Roberts white blend, it has that faint breeze on a warm summer day easy happiness down pat. — 8 years ago

with Delectable

Judy Osgood

9.6

Excellent in Palm Desert.
Recommended by Jensen Market. — 8 years ago

Gilbert Van Hassel

9.3

Jensen knows how to make Pinot. Very good drink now. Not going to last a couple more years. Jensen makes burgundy like pinots, he is just great — 9 years ago

Joe Hirsch

9.0

Kicking off #ipob with a fascinating discussion on aging with Jeffrey Patterson of Mt. Eden, Josh Jensen of Calera, and Ted Lemon of Littorai. A lot of Cali legends in the room today. — 9 years ago

with Jasmine

Dean Max

9.7

Very tasty — 10 years ago

Masayuki Negishi

9.6

これは、最初か、飲みやすく美味い！ざ、カリピノ‼︎ — 10 years ago

Ryo Hayashi

9.7

このヴィンテージは美味い！ — 5 years ago

Steve Brown

9.3

Great Pinot at 11 Maple Jensen Beach — 6 years ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

On the nose, sweet & slightly baked; blackberries, black plum, plum, black raspberries, raspberries & dark cherries. Raspberry cola, perfect intensity of baking spices, soft & savory grilled meats, touch of fresh herbs, just a whiff of pepper, lavender, lilacs and liquid violets. The palate is full bodied, round & lush. The M-M+ tannins are soft and round and about 60% resolved. Gorgeous in the mouth. The fruits are creamy in style. Ripe; blackberries, black plum, plum, black raspberries, raspberries, dark cherries and ripe strawberries. Raspberry cola, vanilla, understated spice, pepper, savoy grilled meats, dry herbs, dry crushed rock powder, a little underbrush, iron pan, loamy dry top soil, some black moist earth, hint of mocha powder, milk chocolate, cigar ash, suede style leather, lavender, lilacs & liquid violets, perfect, round, mouthwatering acidity, great; balance, structure, tension and length. The very long finish is round, lush and has sex appeal. It's drinking really well with a hour/hour & half decant. Better in 1-2 years and has another 4-7 years of really good drinking ahead of it. Great pair with the grilled Kentucky Bourbon marinated chicken skewers and seasoned wild rice. Photos of; Eric Jensen (Owner/Winemaker), tasting room bar, Eric working harvest and the Booker vineyard. Producer notes and history...Booker gets it's name from the two orphan brothers, Claude and Dick Booker, who had purchased the land in the late 1920’s. By the turn of the century, the Booker brothers acquired over 1,200 acres on Paso's westside. The Booker brothers dedicated their lives to being great farmers and humanitarians. Aside from lending their farming knowledge and manual labor to neighbors, they were the area's biggest philanthropists, leaving 100% of their estate to charity when they passed, Dick in 1990 and Claude in 2000. Eric and Lisa Jensen purchased 100 acres of the property in 2001. After making wine with Justin Smith (Saxum) for five years and Stephan Asseo (L'Aventure Wines) for two years, the Jensen's started Booker Vineyard. The 2005 vintage was Eric Jensen first release. Booker produces about 4,500 cases a year depending on what Mother-nature gives them. Booker is located on the westside of Paso Robles, immediately joining the famous Stephan Vineyards that produce L'Aventure Wines. The high-density vineyard is mostly Rhone varieties planted on steep hillsides of calcareous shale. They farm organically, sustainable and biodynamic and treat the entire vineyard as a living organism. Booker uses animals (normally sheep) for weed control and solar panels are placed at the house and winery. The Jensen's are definitely doing things right. If you haven't tried Booker, it's worth your effort. — 7 years ago

with Ronald

Bryant Bickel

9.1

Spot on with my bday gooey butter cake that momma made. She tired to raise me better but those feelings I denied.... Lovely bursting with honeysuckle, bathing in white bouquets, honeycomb, honeydew melon, some white peach. Thanks Jensen! — 8 years ago

Tom Riley

9.2

2007. Accessible right away. Smooth, precise, great balance. Can't wait until I run into this beauty again. Thanks, Phil Jensen. — 9 years ago

Shadd Scott

9.1

Yum! Complex, but mellow. — 9 years ago

Justin Timsit, MS

Wine Director, The Rittenhouse

10

Shared with Mr Jensen himself. — 9 years ago

Alejandro Artigas

9.9

Not only impressed by my first Josh Jensen wine but mesmerized by its scope. Stunning earth, herbal nose contrasting the fruit on the palette. 2nd best Pinot of the year. — 10 years ago

Peter Wasserman

Importer Le Serbet/Becky Wasserman Selections

9.7

With Josh Jensen one of the pioneers! — 10 years ago

Steve Anderson

9.1

Named Anastasis for its “resurrection” in the cellar after fermentation issues. From low-yielding Sauv Blanc vines near Rutherford that were pulled after the 2013 vintage. Sherry notes, with some apple, nut and yellow jujube character. If you go in thinking Jura, you will enjoy this more than if you go in thinking California. Interesting wine. Only about 14 cases, hand bottled by @Graeme MacDonald and @Johanna Jensen according to Abe’s notes. Interesting that I will have consumed about 4% of total production by the time I finish my bottles. — 6 years ago

Jim McCusker

9.2

Awesome syrah from Eric Jensen at Booker! Incredibly rich aromas of something akin to a blackberry reduction, along with hints of black pepper, iodine, and candied blueberries. Full-bodied palate with layers of glycerin, but enough acidity to prevent it from being cloying. Pretty impressive with regard to primary flavors and aromas given its age. I suspect that a lot of the charm of this wine is going to be lost as it ages, so my recommendation is to drink this now! — 7 years ago

with Vanessa

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

Alban Vineyards as they state in their label "The first American winery & vineyard established exclusively for Rhone varieties." This Syrah has settled in nicely after 10 years in bottle. I would say it's peaking. On the nose; scorched earth, sweet & slowly baked; blackberries, blueberries, black raspberries, plum, huckleberries and dark cherries. Mint, eucalyptus, milk chocolate, black olive, notes of liqueur, crushed rocks, loamy top soil and lilacs, violets and lavender. The palate is rich and nicely resolved. The body medium-medium plus. The fruits are ripe, creamy and juicy; blackberries, blueberries, black raspberries, plum, huckleberries, dark cherries and strawberries haunt the long fruit set. Mint, eucalyptus, sage, smoked meat, milk chocolate, black olive, notes of liqueur, crushed dry rocks, gritty volcanic minerals, scorched earth, a little bacon fat, underbrush, a whiff of black pepper, lilacs, violets and lavender, great rich, round, fresh acidity with a very good, long, balanced, well structured, finish with length and staying power. I prefer this over the Cayuse I had a couple of weeks ago. Much better balance of fruit, earth, etc.. photos of their Edna Valley vineyard, fruit that needs netting to protect it from the birds, John Alban and the Alban barrel room. Producer notes and history...In 1985, John Alban planted grapes for other people until he bought an estate in 1989. He focused on wines made from Rhône Valley varietals. Alban is one of the pioneers of the Rhone Rangers movement. They are considered to one of the more influential American Rhone producers. In beginning to grow Viognier, Alban said, "I almost single-handedly doubled the world's acreage," referring to a time when its cultivation was reduced to 50 acres or 20 ha in two areas of the Rhône Valley, Condrieu and Château-Grillet. Alban's work, along with that of Josh Jensen of Calera Wine Company (just sold to Duckhorn, ugh!) in San Benito County, helped to significantly expand plantings of Viognier in California at a time when the variety was near extinction. Alban has 250-acre or 100 ha under vine. Their vineyard area extends 60 acres or 24 ha, planted with Syrah, Viognier and Roussanne. The Alban wines produced are; Lorraine Vineyard, Reva Vineyard Syrah, Seymour's Vineyard Syrah, Patrina Alban Estate Syrah and Pandora, a blend of Grenache and Syrah. They also used to produce a dessert wine from 5% botrytis grapes and aged in 50% new oak, called Rotten Luck. You can still find past vintages on Wine-Searcher. — 7 years ago

Steve Brown

9.0

Nice wine last night at Jensen Beach — 8 years ago

with Ed and Diane

Nicholas Livingston

9.3

If guess a feminine plot of the Côte de Beaune in a warm vintage -in the best sense. Only Josh Jensen. Sheesh! Delicious... — 9 years ago

Jason Yeager

9.5

Eric Jensen did an excellent job with this wine. Salute!! — 9 years ago

with Dina

Scott Atkinson

9.3

I'm constantly baffled as to how Calera makes such good wine year after year. Kudos to Mr. Jensen — 9 years ago

with Gia

Diane Reilly

9.5

At Peter's in Jensen Beach — 10 years ago

Steve Matthiasson

Owner/Winemaker Matthiasson Wines

10

Johanna Jensen Roberts 2012 Albariño. A little effervescent, a little beer-like, a bit like Kombucha, nourishing and healthy-seeming, refreshing, just needs a label to be perfect. Slap a label on this and share it Johanna! — 11 years ago