Harlan Estate, Napa Valley Red Wine, Oakville, California, 2019

Overview of the Wine
Founded in 1984, Harlan Estate is a winegrowing estate in the western hills of Oakville, California – in the heart of the Napa Valley. Consisting of 240 acres (97 ha) of natural splendor set above the fabled Oakville benchlands, the property rises in elevation from 225 to 1,225 feet (68 to 374 m) above sea level. Forty acres (17 ha) under vine, planted to cabernet sauvignon (70%), merlot (20%), cabernet franc (8%), and petit verdot (2%). All hillside siting, on both volcanic and sedimentary bedrock; a combination of terraced vineyards and closely spaced vines on spare soils over fractured rock; vertical trellis with shoot positioning, 360º of exposition.

Winemaker
Will Harlan

Grape / Blend
Cabernet Sauvignon

Origin
Napa Valley, Oakville, California

Winemaker Tasting Notes
These wines possess all the elements of greatness - individuality, power combined with elegance, extraordinary complexity, remarkable aging potential, and compelling richness without ponderousness.

100 Points - Wine Advocate
The head-spinning 2019 Harlan Estate is truly amazing stuff. Gentle cedar notes lead into layered dark chocolate and cassis, somehow impossibly rich yet savory. Full-bodied, concentrated and supple, this is dense, packed with flavor but seemingly weightless, with a lush, lingering finish that combines intensity with freshness to compel sip after sip. Like all truly great wines, it's full of somehow harmonious contradictions.

100 Points - James Suckling
A wine with an endless finish that is tension-driven, with fine tannins and an energetic acidity. Medium to full body with ultra-fine tannins. Blackcurrant character. Subtle and extremely long. Thought-provoking. Youthful. Great length. This is an abstract wine that sets a new benchmark for Napa Valley reds.

100 Points - Decanter
Tasted with winemaker Cory Empting and director of winegrowing Bob Levy at Harlan Estate. Fresh and approachable, with the elegance and structural integrity to last four or five decades, possibly longer. On the nose, beautiful upfront savouriness reveals cassis notes, cigar box and black olive followed by ripe, fresh black and blue fruit. Mesmerizing depth of flavours, with beautiful creamy black and red berries and a deep vein of earthy minerality. Tannins are angular with impressive grip, while acids are firm and refreshing. The finish is offers nuanced black currants, dark chocolate, enticing tobacco and cedar. (JC)

100 Points - Jeb Dunnuck
Matching the perfect 2018, the 2019 Harlan Estate is deeper and richer than the Maiden and has an incredibly pure, layered perfume of ripe currants, truffle, tobacco leaf, chocolate, and gravelly earth. This carries to a full-bodied red with building yet fine tannins, incredible purity of fruit, and flawless balance. Reminding me of a First Growth from Bordeaux given its acidity and tannin balance, as well as just overall sense of class, give bottles 7-8 years and enjoy over the following 30+ years.

99 Points - Vinous
The 2019 Harlan Estate is supremely elegant. Bright floral accents perk up a core of red/purplish fruit, lavender, rose petal, sage and mint all through the 2019. Medium in body and gracious, the 2019 is all energy. It's not so much a wine of a vintage, but rather a wine that reflects the personality of a place and style. Time in the glass brings out the wine's breath and resonance, yet notable freshness and verve remain. This is one of the more delicate, nuanced wines readers will taste from 2019, a year that generally yielded wines of opulence.

96 Points - Wine Spectator
This is nicely rendered, with a core of dark currant and blackberry compote flavors, laced with a singed cast iron hint and backed by lively sweet bay leaf, violet and bramble accents. There’s a serious tug of earth through the finish, keeping this very grounded. Well-built, showing a slightly lighter hand on the oak treatment than usual.

Product size: 750ml