Parker 100 POINTS: I believe the 2001 Harlan Estate and 2002 Harlan Estate’s 100 point scores represent the first time I have given perfect ratings to two successive wines produced in the New World. However, the styles of the two wines couldn’t be more different as each reflects its particular vintage. The 2001 is a classic, long-lived, backward wine with most of its potential concealed at present. On the other hand, it is impossible to resist the flamboyant, extroverted 2002 Harlan Estate’s charm, richness, and overall seductive personality. This profoundly complex wine exhibits notes of cedar, black currant liqueur, scorched earth, smoke, and graphite. Incredibly broad, sweet, full-bodied, opulent, and voluptuous, it literally has everything one could ever want in a great Cabernet Sauvignon-based wine. Already drinkable, it promises to evolve effortlessly for 25-30 years. This prodigious offering is worth mortgaging the farm! Bill Harlan, winemaker Bob Levy and consulting oenologist Michel Rolland have achieved spectacular results in an amazingly short time at this estate in the western hills overlooking the Oakville corridor. The introduction of a second wine, The Maiden, has allowed this team to ratchet up the level of the grand cru. From over 40 acres of vineyard, only 1,500-1,600 cases of Harlan Estate and 800 cases of The Maiden are produced. In order to keep quality at such an extraordinary level, I suspect production will never go much higher. Purchased direct and stored in my temperature controlled wine cellar.

"The 2004 Harlan Estate is probably the most precocious and accessible Harlan Estate that this perfectionist team has made. Already compelling, the wine has notes of roasted coffee, charcoal, blackberry, spring flowers, and some background sweet, toasty notes. Dense, fleshy, exuberant, even flamboyant by the standards of Bill Harlan, this wine exhibits no jaggedness or rough edges, has relatively high tannins, but they melt away on the palate. The wine is sensationally well-endowed, long, and rich � a tour de force in winemaking. They can do no wrong at Harlan, and it is obvious, even in the most challenging vintages such as 1998, that this estate is a true grand cru/first growth, making wines of irrefutable world-class quality. Of course, none of this comes cheap, as the price is now moving up into the league with Screaming Eagle, but there are no shortage of takers. So what�s new? Harlan Estate continues to produce only a meager 1,500 or so cases from over 40 acres of beautifully manicured hillside vineyards overlooking the Oakville corridor (to be precise, the western slopes looking down on Martha�s Vineyard and parts of the To-Kalon Vineyard). Proprietor Bill Harlan and his winemaking team of Bob Levy and global oenologist Michel Rolland push the envelope in all ways, but the results continue to be magnificent as well as increasingly expensive and rare. The second wine, which is usually around 1,000+ cases, is The Maiden, which is also a super wine in its own right. Purchased direct and stored in my temperature controlled wine cellar. 98 points" Robert Parker

An attractive blend of knock-your-socks-off charisma, this Hey Mambo Sultry Red is hands-down a rare beauty. Our 2006 vintage is a blend of Barbera, Zinfandel, Syrah, Petite Sirah, Carignane and Alicante Bouchet grapes. The color of garnet-dyed satin, this wine opens with aromas reminiscent of an old-fashioned five and dime, chocolate granache, red raspberries, cloves and sweet leather. Enticing scents are satisfied by indulging flavors. Blackberry cobbler, holiday plum sauce, espresso, and decadent chocolate unfold into notes of dried herbs and deeply toasted French oak.

Robert Parker 95 points The 2001 Insignia (a blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, and 3% Merlot) is an inky/purple-colored effort representing a return to the superb quality of such vintages as 1997. Aged in 100% new French oak, this blockbuster reveals gorgeous aromas of melted licorice, creme de cassis, liquid minerals, and hints of chocolate and spice box. The finish is long, full-bodied, opulent, and voluptuous. Considerable tannin is largely concealed by the lavish richness, extract, and glycerin. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2020+. The bulk of the fruit for the Insignia cuvee comes from vineyards on Manley Lane as well as the Stags Leap area. All the Petit Verdot and Malbec utilized is from the vineyard adjacent to the winery. The Insignia cuvee has been one of Napa’s great Cabernet Sauvignon-based wines since its inception in 1974. In the eighties, this offering seemed to fall off a bit, but it was phenomenal in the seventies, and most of those vintages are still alive. Moreover, it has been absolutely brilliant since 1991. Remarkably,18,000-20,000 cases of this wine are produced in top vintages.

Bordeaux fans will appreciate the casual sophistication and elegant structure of this wine. The wine opens with aromas of blueberries, cranberries and strawberries with touches of cassis. On the palate ripe tannins surround rich black cherries, blackberries and plum flavors with a hint of toasted oak balanced with a nice acidity.

"A rich, decidedly earthy style of Opus, showing currant, anise, black cherry, mineral, leather and sage flavors that are focused and complex. Drink now through 2010. 94 points" Wine Spectator

"Bordeaux-like in its structure and balance, showing cedary oak, dusty berry, dried currant and mineral, with hints of herb and sage. The flavors firm up on the finish, and this is rich and intense without being heavy. Needs decanting. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec. Best from 2009 through 2015. 90 points" Wine Spectator

A dry, short winter brought early bud break, and bloom by late March; our Sonoma vineyards ripened by September. Each parcel fermented on its natural yeasts. Color and tannin extracted easily, and we pressed, on average, after seven days. The style and character of the Three Valleys are determined by the lots we choose for their fruit, color, and/or structure. When malolactic finished, we assembled these lots from the ten individual vineyards that make up the 2007. In barrel, the wine clarified naturally, and tannins resolved in time for an August bottling. Rich fruit and exotic spice give immediate appeal. This excellent wine will be at its best over the next five to six years.

92 Points Wine Spectator: "Floral grapey aromas fold in with new leather and currant flavors in a sleek, rich, concentrated style that's very Bordeaux-like in its balance and restraint, showing black cherry, herb and tar notes on a long, persistent finish. Tannins are firm and integrated. Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2012. 4,500 cases made."