Founded by the late, great Josh Jensen in 1974 on Mt. Harlan in California's central coast, Calera is one of California's most iconic Pinot Noir and Chardonnay producers. The brand has been owned by The Duckhorn Portfolio since 2017, and quality remains excellent by any standard.
Calera 2022 Central Coast Chardonnay ($28) This is one of Calera's most accessible and affordable wines. Not estate-grown, but superb in quality, it demonstrates the integrity of the brand with generous but focused apricot, citrus, and orange zest notes, the latter often a hallmark of central coast Chardonnay. This is a beautiful, versatile white with subtle oak notes that would be great with lobster, roast chicken, or pork tenderloin with a mustard and tarragon sauce. Super classy for the price. (92 Points)
Calera 2021 Reed Vineyard Pinot Noir Mt. Harlan ($95) This small-production, single-vineyard bottling comes from a 6.7-acre vineyard planted at an elevation of 2,200 feet in 1975 that yields just under 1 ton of grapes per acre. The resulting wine from the fine 2021 vintage is intense and concentrated, but irrefutably Pinot Noir. It has deep red currant, raspberry, bitter cherry fruit, plus some forest scrub notes, brisk acidity and moderate tannin. This is a serious, age-worthy Pinot Noir with a great sense of place. (96 Points)
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