Kellin

9.8

Today was not a day I will soon forget. Getting to walk through Harlan Estate with the legendary Don Weaver is truly a highlight of my career (and life!). A kinder and more hospitable man does not exist, I’m sure of it.

To top off Don’s hospitality was having the 2017 and 2020 Vintages side-by-side. In a word: breathtaking. Both vintages are very emotional due to tremendous pressures felt from fires, the pandemic, and other factors. You can almost taste that tension in the wine. But the Masterful wine growers and wine makers at Harlan Estate were able to find harmony and balance with some help from Mother Nature with both vintages.

The 2017, having had some time in the bottle expresses more floral and aromatic notes of leather and asphalt. The pallet it is expressive, structured, and broad shouldered with herbaceous bay leaf and dark cherry flavors that find their way into parts of your pallet reserved just for things that taste so good you get chills. Undoubtedly a wine that will age gracefully over time.

The 2020, by contrast, was tasted out of the barrel. It already shows a tannin profile that is a hallmark of Harlan Estate; I can’t wait to drink it once it’s been in bottle for a few years; drink it to remember 2020, drink it to forget 2020? Either way, it will be representative of the special place that is Harlan Estate.

Grateful, grateful, grateful. — 2 years ago

Ray Vanderhoff

9.2

Fantastic food wine. Plenty of acidity and minerality. Lemon and wet stones on the nose. Lots of citrus and minerals on the pallet. Nice hint of oak. A slightly creamy finish. Revisited in July 2021. Still remarkably fresh. All notes above apply. Main change is the color: Now Lemonade Yellow! Revisited again in October 2021. Revisited again in May 2022. Oak was a bit more present in this bottle. Still outstanding! Revisited again in December 2022. This one is coming to the end of its life cycle, but this one is still bright and creamy. Lemon now very pronounced. — 5 years ago

with Kasey

Aaron Tan

9.2

I heard something today on IDTT that exemplifies tasting this wine - never explicitly was the term "great" terrior used, but I think it's safe to say that the discussion was about great terrior. A "great" vineyard isn't necessarily better than others in terms of quality... Or even necessarily need to represent the covering GI... but it is "great" because of clarity. It produces a unique expression CONSTANTLY, irrespective of vintage or producer. In short, it speaks precisely of a place... Cliché but truly. And that's Pettenthal! Time and time again I've seen this. With KP, Kai, Gunderloch, Kuhling-Gillot. Pettenthal is great and this wine sealed it for me.

Brought this to blind KP. It was an obvious choice since KP's tiny super plot was once part of FK Schmitt's holdings. Despite the differences with KP's insane 17' auction wine (vintage, style, vineyard size, philosophy), this wine was clearly Pettenthal. That cool and smoky elements that I've learned to associate with the vineyard, fine minerally backbone. Damn! This has to be one of the most tightly focused aged Auslese's I've had in a while. What a pristine bottle - all thanks to Roland's exquisite sourcing skills. Stone fruits, petrol, honey, spice, umami elements. Finish was admittedly one-dimensional. Could be longer. Still, what a lovely #rieslingstudy — 6 years ago

David Kline

9.1

With the look of a certain sample and the smell of hemp flour popping from the off-white head, it looks like you might not get the job! On the plus side, there is a lovely candied grapefruit mixed with hemp flower, tangerine, and lemon zest aroma driving the Hebrew alphabet lacing. The pine tar entry isn’t for everyone, but I for one, appreciate flavors that resinate (sic). Pine cones and petrol, hemp seeds and lemongrass, almond extract and bay leaf. Lemon peel and grapefruit zest pull us back to fruits but a pecan bitterness and tea tree oil, make it arboreal. This is almost Arrogant Bastard’s kinder, sweeter sister in a puffy cloud. #sweetwaterbrewing #sweetwater #sweetwaterfourtwenty #gthirteenipa #fourtwentystrain #ipa #stickyipa #indiapaleale #beer #birra #bier #biere #cerveza #cerveja #sweetwaterbrew #GAbeer #georgiabeer — 4 years ago

with Courtney

Mark Flesher

9.2

Has been five years since I've enjoyed this one. Wrote a novel the last time, mentioning that the next decade would be kinder to this wine than this one, and I still for the most part believe that. I think the drinking window on this wine will be short. If you're holding a mag or 3L of this wine, I can imagine how much better off you're going to be than the holders of the 750's. Black cherry, dirty raspberry and graphite. A little more herbaceous than the 91, and also a little thinner. I think either this wine is as good as it gets, or can maybe see some improvement in the next couple of years. Best years for this wine IMO 2020-2025. — 5 years ago

with Dan, Bradley and 3 others

Matthew Dickson

9.3

Absolutely beautiful example of a 100% Cab Franc. Decanted for an hour before drinking. Lightly sweet on the front (almost apple-y) with a pleasing acidity on the whole mouth-feel. The typical Cabernet tannins show up at the end, but it's a kinder and more humble version compared to the big red Cabernet Sauvignon cousins. Will likely explore more Cab Franc instead of Cab Sauv next time at the wine store. Paired excellently with slow cooked beef shanks and a chilled out folk music playlist off Spotify. — 6 years ago

Christian Adams

9.2

Great rounder style of dry Silvaner. Enough acidity to lift the whole shebang. Worth the entry level price. And its 6 years old! — 4 years ago

Lasse KR

9.0

Vin-Kinder-Æg. Tre yndlingsdruer i én flaske. Ekstremt reduktiv og ægget ved åbning. — 4 years ago

Jordan Wardlaw

9.4

Stunning GG. Such power and finesse. Dense, tropical and super-ripe but the acid stands up well. Everything about this is incredibly well executed. — 5 years ago

Pinotman /// Andreas

8.9

One of the best Pinot’s on the Market for 20 bucks or so. Juicy and inviting. Strawberry touch Cranberry and hint of black tea leaves. Smokey. A fantastic wine of high quality for a Party. A high rating because of the low price. — 6 years ago