“Wine is bottled poetry” — ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON
The Hillside is the darkest and richest of the wines, with enough structure to handle its intensity. Superripe plum, bittersweet chocolate, tobacco and licorice flesh out as the wine ages.
WINEMAKING DETAILS
Varietal: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Appellation: Calistoga AVA, Napa Valley
Aging: 20 months in 85% New French Oak
Alcohol: 14.6% by vol.
Production: 279 Cases
TASTING NOTES
2013 HILLSIDE
The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Missiaen’s Hillside Vineyard represents a serious essence of Cabernet Sauvignon. It is almost painfully extracted and concentrated, but tannins are sweet, the wine enormously well-endowed, rather massive and somewhat old-school. This reminds me of how the old Mayacamas Cabernets tasted from 1968-1975: thick, super-dense bombs of massive fruit extract. This certainly possesses those characteristics.
2012 HILLSIDE
The 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Treva’s Vineyard is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon and exhibits beautiful créme de cassis, blueberry and blackberry fruit. The tannins are supple, the wine opulent, full-bodied and impressive. This is another terrific 2012 that looks set to please those looking for immediate gratification, as well as those wanting to cellar these wines of enormous potential for 12-15+ years.
2011 HILLSIDE
The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Treva’s Vineyard is by far the most reticent of the three 2011s I tasted from Harris. Intensely mineral and savory, the 2011 boasts huge fruit and equally imposing tannins that are going to require patience. Iron, graphite, smoke and licorice flow through to the huge, structured finish. The Treva’s is a wine for the cellar, there is little doubt about that. This is another drop-dead gorgeous showing from Harris and winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown.
2010 HILLSIDE
Harris’s 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Treva’s Vineyard is the deepest, fleshiest wine of these 2010s. It brings together a rich expression of fruit allied to firm mountain tannins. Blue and black fruits, grilled savory herbs, tobacco, smoke and leather all come to life in a towering, brooding Cabernet Sauvignon loaded with pure intensity and pedigree. I can’t wait to see how the 2010 develops over the coming years.
2009 HILLSIDE
The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Treva’s Vineyard is a huge wine that nevertheless maintains extraordinary elegance. Black fruit, smoke, licorice and wild herbs are some of the many notes that emerge from this muscular deep wine. This is a super-impressive showing. The Treva’s is the only wine here aged in 100% new French oak barrels. The 2009 has more than enough stuffing to drink well for a number of years.
2008 HILLSIDE
The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Treva’s Vineyard (approximately 300 cases produced) is from a hillside vineyard planted in red, volcanic soils. It exhibits a Graves-like, charcoal, scorched earth character along with deep blackberry and black currant fruit notes, full-bodied power, sweet tannins, a distinctive earthiness and a rich personality. It is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from Clone 337 and, again, is aged 20 months in 100% new oak.
2007 HILLSIDE
The 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Treva’s Vineyard exhibits more scorched earth/burning ember characteristics intermixed with attractive red and black currants. Its aromatic and flavor profiles are reminiscent of a Graves wine from Bordeaux. Deep and full-bodied, it tastes like it is of volcanic origin with its smoky, scorched earth character. It also reveals more sweet oak than its two siblings.
2006 HILLSIDE
The strongest 2006 cuvee is the 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Treva’s Vineyard. It reveals a dense purple color along with more upfront fruit than its two 2006 brethren, and cedar-infused black currant flavors revealing a scorched earth note in the background. This opulent, fleshy 2006 has more in common with a 2007 than the general muscle-laden character of most 2006s. Stunningly rich and fruit-forward, it is low in acidity, but riper with sweeter tannins than its peers. Drink it now or cellar it for twenty years.
2005 HILLSIDE
The 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Treva’s Vineyard is a slightly bigger wine (15.2% natural alcohol) and has an almost inky purple color to the rim. Its great concentration ratchets up the level that exists in the Jake’s Creek to a surreal, even sublime quality. This is stunningly rich, with crème de cassis, blackberry, cedar wood, licorice and incense. This wine is full-bodied, multidimensional and still quite youthful and backward. Nevertheless, it’s locked and loaded, so to speak, very full, opulent and promising. This is one of the vintage’s great wines and capable of lasting another two decades.
2004 HILLSIDE
The 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Treva’s Vineyard VSR comes from a hillside parcel that produced 240 cases from a blend of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot. Notes of scorched earth, spring flowers, blueberries, blackberries, crushed rocks, and coffee beans emerge from this opulent, dense, rich, terroir-based wine. Filled with character and richness.
“The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Casey’s Lakeview Vineyard shows more of a dark, black fruit profile that matches quite well with the wine’s unctuous, rich feel. Black cherry, plum, menthol, earthiness, lavender and licorice all meld together in a big wine that shows all the muscle that is typical of Calistoga Cabernets. Ripeness is totally pushed to the edge in this full-throttle Cabernet from Heritage School and winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown.”
WINEMAKING DETAILS
Varietal: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Appellation: Calistoga AVA, Napa Valley
Aging: 20 months in 80% New French Oak
Alcohol: 14.8% by vol.
Production: 239 Cases
TASTING NOTES
2013 LAKEVIEW
The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Casey’s Lakeview is similarly inky bluish/purple to the rim. Tasting like blood, this wine is dense and rich with lots of chocolate, espresso, earth and spice. It is deep, full-bodied, and again, a masculine style of wine that needs at least 4-5 years of cellaring and should keep for 25 or more years.
2012 LAKEVIEW
The 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Lakeview Vineyard is another massively concentrated Cabernet Sauvignon with a dense purple color, lots of blueberry and blackberry fruit, along with floral notes, sweet tannins, lush opulent mouthfeel and a full-bodied personality puts it right in the wheel-house of the Treva’s in terms of quality. Stylistically, it’s much closer than dissimilar. The wine is very broad, rich and impressive with a velvety finish that argues for immediate gratification, but this one will last 15 or more years.
2011 LAKEVIEW
The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Lakeview Vineyard is intense and beautiful. Here the fruit shows gorgeous density and richness, all supported by firm tannins that add a sense of structure. Far from an approachable 2011, the Lakeview is going to require patience. Cedar, smoke, graphite, menthol and licorice all add complexity as the wine opens up in the glass. This is an impressive showing.
2010 LAKEVIEW
The 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Lakeview Vineyard is another standout. Here the fruit is so intense and textured that the tannins are virtually unnoticeable. Black cherries, tar, menthol, savory herbs and iron are some of the many notes that seem to explode from the glass. Despite the wine’s opulence, there is plenty of tension and vibrancy to support the fruit. The 2010 boasts tremendous balance, not to mention tons of pure appeal.
2009 LAKEVIEW
The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Lakeview Vineyard is a bigger, rounder wine with pure dark fruit, smoke, spices and new leather, all of which come together nicely on the textured finish. This is powerful, rich and well balanced. The 2009 spent 18 months in 80% new French oak barrels.
2008 LAKEVIEW
More elegant floral, blueberry, raspberry and black currant characteristics emerge from the 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Lakeview Vineyard. From a vineyard planted in more chalky soils, the blend includes a small amount of Petit Verdot and the aging is identical to its two siblings, 20 months in 100% new French oak. With a deep ruby/purple color, a supple texture and an excellent mid-palate as well as length, this stylish Cabernet Sauvignon can be drunk now or cellared for 15 or more years.
2007 LAKEVIEW
The most fragrant of this trio is the 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Lakeview Vineyard. Beautiful floral, blackberry, blueberry, wild mountain berry, and forest floor scents soar from the glass of this opaque purple-colored 2007. Velvety-textured and opulent with terrific fruit on the attack, mid-palate, and finish as well as admirable intensity and power, this seamless wine can be drunk now (because of its awesome purity of fruit), but should evolve beautifully for two decades or more.
2006 LAKEVIEW
The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Lakeview Vineyard is cut from the same mould. Ripe, well-made, seductive, with lower acidity and riper tannin than its sibling, this wine is rich, fleshy, relatively forward, and ideal for drinking over the next 15+ years.
2005 LAKEVIEW
The vineyard with the best view, I suppose, is the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Lakeview Vineyard. This is the most supple, sensual, and sexiest of the Cabernet Sauvignons. It comes across like a French Pomerol, but bigger and broader. Sadly, there are only 100 cases of it. Dense, opulent, flamboyant, but at the same time elegant and pure, with intense notes of earth, espresso roast, chocolate, licorice, sweet black currants, and cherries, it should be drunk over the next 10-15 years.
“The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Julie’s Creekside Vineyard is lush, powerful and voluptuous. Succulent dark cherry, cedar, tobacco and licorice are all pushed forward, helped by soft contours and silky tannins that really allow the wine to be expressive. Even with all of its intensity, the 2016 retains terrific freshness and detail, always the biggest challenge with this warm site in Calistoga. Red-toned fruit, tobacco, blood orange and earthy notes add the closing shades of nuance.”
WINEMAKING DETAILS
Varietal: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Appellation: Calistoga AVA, Napa Valley
Aging: 20 months in 80% New French Oak
Alcohol: 14.8% by vol.
Production: 265 Cases
TASTING NOTES
2013 CREEKSIDE
The 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon Julie’s Creekside Vineyard is an impressive, opaque purple-colored wine that is super-concentrated and extracted with relatively sweet tannins, a touch of chocolate and espresso, a full-bodied mouthfeel and pure, dark, primordial fruits. This is a big, masculine, concentrated wine set for long-term aging.
2012 CREEKSIDE
The 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Creek Vineyard is slightly more subdued and less boisterous than the Treva’s, but again shows stylistic similarities with its blueberry and blackberry fruit, medium to full-bodied mouthfeel and an impressive purity and texture. This beauty can be drunk now or cellared for 12-15 years.
2011 CREEKSIDE
Sweet tobacco, licorice, mint, fennel, smoke and incense lead to a core of dark fruit in the 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Creek Vineyard. The softest and most approachable of the Harris 2011s, the Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Creek Vineyard is beautiful, expressive and open today, with distinctly savory notes and plenty of vintage 2011 energy.
2010 CREEKSIDE
Dark cherries, plums, menthol, licorice and flowers all come together in the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Creek Vineyard. There is plenty of intensity in the glass as this full-bodied, opulent wine shows off its considerable personality. Sweet floral and spiced notes add lift on the finish. Readers will have to be patient with the 2010 Jake’s Creek, but it is striking, even today.
2009 CREEKSIDE
The 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Creek Vineyard is a big, firm wine laced with cedar, tobacco, spices and grilled herbs. There is substantial energy and authority in this structured Cabernet. Elements of wildness on the finish are very appealing. The 2009 spent 18 months in 75% new oak.
2008 CREEKSIDE
The 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Creek Vineyard (100% Cabernet Sauvignon aged 20 months in 100% new French oak) reveals abundant aromas of tobacco leaf, black currants, loamy soil and crushed rocks in its full-bodied, dense personality. With sweet tannin, a layered mouthfeel and a long finish, this beauty should drink well for 15-20 years.
2007 CREEKSIDE
The dense purple-colored 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Creek exhibits copious aromas of loamy soil, black currants, licorice, unsmoked tobacco, and cedar. With a dazzling texture, full-bodied power, sweet but noticeable tannins, and a youthful, promising style, it will benefit from 4-5 years of bottle age, and should drink well for 25 years.
2006 CREEKSIDE
The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Creek seems to have plenty of tannin, but the layers of fruit, glycerin, and concentration admirably balance out the wine’s structure. This is a dense ruby/purple-colored wine with notes of spice box, scorched earth, blackberries, minerals, and coffee beans. It should be at its best between 2010 and 2025.
2005 CREEKSIDE
The 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Vineyard (15% alcohol) is a young, virile and masculine style of Cabernet Sauvignon, with loads of minerality, blackberry fruit, damp earth and coffee as well as a full-bodied mouthfeel. Still youthful and promising, the wine is just beginning to enter its plateau of maturity, where it should stay for a good 15-20 years. It has texture, fullness and richness as well as purity, but give it ideally another 2-3 years bottle age and drink it over the following 15-20.
2004 CREEKSIDE
The 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Jake’s Creek Vineyard is a bigger, plumper effort than the 2003 displaying the vintage’s supple, flashy, fruit-forward style. It possesses an opaque purple color as well as a sweet bouquet of creme de cassis, chocolate, licorice, and high quality toasty oak. It is fat and rich, with enough underlying tannin and acidity to keep things in focus. This cuvee will be bottled without fining or filtration after spending 19-20 months in new French oak.
The only wine sourced off property, this wine has brightness and full bodied balance typical of wines made by Thomas Brown. The fruit is sourced from Calistoga AVA and produces a versatile wine, easy for sipping and pairing with a variety of food. The acid and tannic structures reflect the wine of our estate grown wines and can be enjoyed for years to come.
WINEMAKING DETAILS
Varietal: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon
Appellation: Calistoga AVA, Napa Valley
Aging: 20 months in 80% New French Oak
Alcohol: 14.4% by vol.
Production: 245 Cases
“The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Blend is one of the most elegant wines I have tasted from Heritage School, and that includes the wines made at the estate under its former name Harris Estate Vineyards. Powerful and yet not over the top, the 2016 offers plenty of intensity in its super-ripe dark fruit and mocha/chocolate flavors, and yet all the elements seem to fall into place effortlessly.”
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