x
  • Country ranking ?

    201
  • Producer ranking ?

    24
  • Decanting time

    3h
  • When to drink

    now to 2045
  • Food Pairing

    Lamb Loin with Carrot Risotto & Beet Purée & Butternut Squash

The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.

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97 points James Suckling

 Fabulous floral aromas of currants, flowers, stones and rosemary stem. Purity. Full body with a fabulous backbone of chewy tannins with a gorgeous austerity. Elegance with power. This needs at least three or four more years. (5/2014) 

94 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

 Saturated bright ruby. Precise aromas of urgent crushed blackcurrant, licorice and violet. Densely packed but very tightly coiled today, communicating a powerful impression of brooding energy in the way of a young Latour. At once imploded and smooth, showing superb precision to its black fruit and mineral flavors. Less expressive today than the line-up of Bond wines but this firmly tannic vintage of Harlan Estate has the spine and energy for a slow and graceful evolution in bottle. May ultimately merit an even higher score. (5/2014) 

94 points Vinous

 The 2011 Harlan Estate is super-expressive and textured in the glass. Dark red cherry, plum, spice and new leather open up as the wine sits in the glass. Decidedly mid-weight and gracious, the 2011 impresses for its exceptional balance and sense of proportion. Harlan Estate is capable of myriad of expressions. In 2011, the more feminine side of the property comes through. Although not a blockbuster, the 2011 is incredibly beautiful, especially considering how challenging the year was. (AG)  (12/2014) 

93 points Wine Spectator

 A powerful expression of Cabernet reminiscent of a young Ausone, this is dense, extracted, layered and nuanced, showing fresh earth and rocky soil notes. Once past the chewiness, the ripe currant, plum and wild berry flavors persist.  (10/2014)

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The Story

With the founding of Harlan Estate in 1984, we embarked upon our mission of creating a “first growth” of California. The estate’s early vineyard development began with just six acres. Today our planting is essentially complete, with nearly forty acres under vine to the classic varietals: cabernet sauvignon (70%), merlot (20%), cabernet franc (8%), and petit verdot (2%). Invariably, the finished wine is predominately cabernet sauvignon, which we blend with varying amounts of the other three varietals as we seek to express faithfully the unique and distinctive character of the site.

Modest quantities of wine were produced in 1987, 1988, and 1989 from grapes that represented the second, third, and fourth leaf of our estate vineyard. In each of those years a small number of barrels were produced in the hope of gaining a prescient glimpse into what the character of the land—never before cultivated—might have to offer. The wines were blended, bottled, and labeled with a special designation. Though charming in their own way, these first wines fell short of our standards and aspirations, so were never released. They continue to serve as humble reminders of where we began the journey.

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Tasting note

color

Deep, Purple and Bright

ending

Long, Lingering and Spicy

flavors

Blackcurrant, Toasty and Chocolate

nose

Open

taste

Average in Acidity, High tannin, Balanced, Concentrated, Complex, Youthful, Full-bodied, Focused, Vivid and Drying tannins

Verdict

Impressive

Written Notes

Fabulous floral aromas of currants, flowers, stones and rosemary stem. Purity. Full body with a fabulous backbone of chewy tannins with a gorgeous austerity. Elegance with power. This needs at least three or four more years.

  • 97p

Saturated bright ruby. Precise aromas of urgent crushed blackcurrant, licorice and violet. Densely packed but very tightly coiled today, communicating a powerful impression of brooding energy in the way of a young Latour. At once imploded and smooth, showing superb precision to its black fruit and mineral flavors. Less expressive today than the line-up of Bond wines but this firmly tannic vintage of Harlan Estate has the spine and energy for a slow and graceful evolution in bottle. May ultimately merit an even higher score.

  • 94p

The 2011 Harlan Estate is super-expressive and textured in the glass. Dark red cherry, plum, spice and new leather open up as the wine sits in the glass. Decidedly mid-weight and gracious, the 2011 impresses for its exceptional balance and sense of proportion. Harlan Estate is capable of myriad of expressions. In 2011, the more feminine side of the property comes through. Although not a blockbuster, the 2011 is incredibly beautiful, especially considering how challenging the year was.

  • 94p
Good looking normal size bottle. Colour is purple, and looking bright, dark and deep. On the nose it is open. The taste is vivid, focused, with high tannin ., with drying tannins, and average in acidity, full-bodied, with concentrated, balanced, complex structure and youthful. On the palate it is layered and has blackcurrant, chocolate and toasty flavours. The finish is long, lingering, spicy and vibrant. This wine is impressive.
- (Tasting note created by Tb's AI)
  • 97p
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Information

Origin

Oakville, Napa Valley

Vintage Quality

Above Average

Value For Money

Best buy

Investment potential

Good

Fake factory

None
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