Great food and wine paired beautifully — 5 years ago
Beautiful fruit on the nose. Medium bodied with bright acidity. Notes of vanilla on the finish. — 6 years ago
Definitely ripe but still really balanced a nice. Just a tad too much heat tho — 7 years ago
Medium bodied. Balanced acidity. A good amount of oak, but not too heavy. Startling depth for the age and price. — 7 years ago
Some pretty decent fruit. Paired well with brisket. — 8 years ago
Delicious, impeccable chard. Stellar producer. — 3 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. — 5 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. — 7 years ago
Wow. I don't know what happened in the interim since I last had this, but it really turned the corner. The winemaker is Adam Henkel, formerly of Harlan, who seems to have really crafted a sleeper. Wonderfully integrated tannins! Dark cherry and some other red fruits on the palate. Excellent finish. — 7 years ago
Tasty. Well balanced with fruity finish and light minerality compared to most Viogniers. Could drink at summer bbq — 9 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. — 5 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! — 6 years ago
We joined the Calera wine club 4 years ago after tasting this and other wines from the 35th Anniversary vintage. Wow, today it's bold, fruit forward-dark fruits- and a mouth coating wine which is unusual for a Pinot Noir. This is their pay-the-bills wine while the Mount Harlan wines age a little before release. Spectacular Wine! Glad that we have 3 more aging in the cellar. — 7 years ago
From the Mount Eden vineyard, bright golden color with aromas of exotic fruits with hints of floral notes. On the palate, the wine shows sweet buttery fruits, floral with gentle acidity. The wine tastes like a little Semillon was added, but it's 100% whole cluster Chardonnay aged in neutral oak. The finish is long and perfumed. Well crafted but not a favorite style. Tasting Sample. — 7 years ago
Always balanced. Understated and excellent. — 8 years ago
2013. Great example of Santa Maria Chardonnay. Lemon zest, just-ripe peach, and green apple overlay a pronounced impression of minerality. Deft use of oak that lifts the aromatics and texture rather than overwhelming it, adding subtle notes of toast and cinnamon to the finish. Singularly Santa Maria; stands head to head with something like Hanzell or Mount Eden but never sacrifices its strong sense of place. — 8 years ago
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
Norman Gennaro
Inky, dark, rich. I’m saying the Harlan by a mile and then Colgin — a year ago