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Harlan Estate is one of Napa's most prominent wine producers, self-styled as a Napa "first growth". The vineyard is located in the Oakville AVA, in the hills above Martha's Vineyard (Heitz Cellar) and To Kalon (Robert Mondavi), just north of Napa town itself. Its Cabernet Sauvignon-based flagship wine is one of California's most sought-after wines, regularly commanding prices exceeding $1000 per bottle.
The estate was founded in 1984 by property developer William Harlan, who had cut his teeth at the Merryvale winery and Meadowood lodge before buying 240 acres (97 hectares) of land in the Oakville hills. Some 40 acres (16ha) of this was cleared for vineyards – mostly planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, but with some Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.
Harlan Estate's first commercial vintage was the 1990, which was released in 1996 with a then-expensive price tag of $65 a bottle. Since then, the estate has cemented itself as a cult wine producer, with five vintages achieving 100-point scores from Robert Parker. In addition to the flagship red, Harlan Estate also makes a second wine, The Maiden.
Varietal | Proprietary Blend |
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Vintage | 2006 |
Rating | 96 RP |
Bottle Size | 6 x 750ml |
Bottle Quantity | 6 |
Country | USA |
Region | California |
Location | North Coast |
Producer | Harlan Estate |
Color | Red |
Wine Type | Table |
Rating | 96 RP - The 2006 Harlan Estate has turned out better than I originally predicted. Its dense ruby/purple color is followed by classic aromas of creme de cassis, melted licorice, smoked meats, burning embers, and graphite. It has thrown off some of the tannic clout it displayed last year, revealing great balance. A candidate for “wine of the vintage,†this dense, full-bodied effort has 25+ years of life ahead of it. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2035. This extraordinary estate, run by Bill Harlan, has never had either a shortage of ambition or patience. Harlan originally had his wines made elsewhere, but never found the resulting product up to his standards until his home vineyard, high on the western hills of the Oakville Corridor, hit an acceptable level of quality, which turned out to be in 1990. In October, I did a vertical tasting of every Harlan Estate vintage made (which I will report on at a future date), and one thing that was clear is just how extraordinary these wines are, and how well they are aging. Even in California's lighter, more challenging years, Harlan turned out wines that anyone would be happy to own and consume. The newest offerings include two vintages of The Maiden essentially their second wine, and the flagship Harlan Estate fewer than 2,000 cases produced. RP |
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Varietal | Proprietary Blend |
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Vintage | 2006 |
Rating | 96 RP |
Bottle Size | 6 x 750ml |
Bottle Quantity | 6 |
Country | USA |
Region | California |
Location | North Coast |
Producer | Harlan Estate |
Color | Red |
Wine Type | Table |
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