When I learned winemaking in Bordeaux most wineries still made wine that was meant for the ages. Things have changed since but I liked that tradition and I decided to maintain it in my project. I built my palate on the wines of the 70’s and the 80’s from the very extensive cellar of my in-laws. I really liked it! Traditionally families would buy wines knowing they would have to wait 20 year to drink it. A lovely tradition developed where basically the previous generation was buying for the next. I like this tradition because it created a sense of continuity, a deeper feeling of family and very importantly a legacy.
In this spirit, from the inception of Hesperian Wines, I kept a good portion of my wines in perfect conditions in a climate controlled warehouse for release when the wines were ready to drink. You now get the opportunity to purchase perfectly matured wine without having to wait.
Harry's Vineyard
2004 is my inaugural Hesperian release. For my first few years in Napa I was content making wine for other wineries. But, being a young and rambunctious I was eager to show the world I could make a classic cabernet that would stand the test of time. The wine boasts delicate flavors of cherry, cranberry, loam, orange rind and minerality. The mouthfeel is soft and rich with a silky entry, a round midpalate and a still slightly tannic finish with lingering flavors of iron, blood and red fruits
Alcohol level: | 14.7% |
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Cépage: | 100% Cabernet Sauvignon |
Élevage: | 19 Months in 60 % new French Oak |
Production: | 170 Case |
Optimal drinking window: | 2015-2030 |
Harry's Vineyard
2005 was the second vintage of my Hesperian project. The weather was cold, and grapes ripened slowly, and I waited until late October to harvest. These conditions are prone to produce wine that takes a few extra time in the bottle to let the tannins settle down and soften. Not conducive to big, bold drink now wines, but perfect for my classic Bordeaux style of winemaking. Fifteen years since harvest and 13 years resting in ideal cellar conditions, the 2015 Harry’s Vineyard is drinking at the peak of its potential.
Alcohol level: | 14.7% by volume |
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Cépage: | 100% Caberenet Sauvignon |
Élevage: | 19 Months in 100 % new French Oak |
Production: | 150 Cases |
Optimal drinking window: | 2015 -2030 |
56% Harry's Coombsville, 25% Tony's Spring Mt and 19% Tom's Rutherford
2007 produced very classical wines. This wine was created by blending the wines coming from three vineyards. A hint of orange appears on the rim. It is delicious now (03/16/20) with floral notes mingling with blueberry, blackberry, mint, and a hint of leather. The wine is medium-bodied, very balanced, silky, and plush. It marries gracefully power and finesse. An extremely long finish with floral notes, laurel, violet, and dried fruit. This wine still shows fresh fruits, yet it also exhibits tertiary notes of forest floor, mushrooms,
Alcohol level: | 14.4% |
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Cépage: | 100% Cabernet Sauvignon |
Élevage: | 19 Months in 37.5% new French oak |
Production: | 387 cases |
Optimal drinking window: | 2015-2027 |
57% Hagen Vineyard -Coombsville , 43% Paul's Vineyard -Napa
This is a dark, mysterious and oh so succulent wine. Loads of cassis, cassis budwood, boxwood, cedar, sweet tobacco and blood. A rich, dense, balanced and creamy wine with crunchy, classy tannins. Ripe, dark fruits meld with flowers, smoke, licorice, tar and mineral as this fresh and vinous red opens up in the glass. There is a wonderful purity and sheer density to the fruit that caresses the palate all the way through to a very long cassis stem finish.
Alcohol level: | 14.4% |
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Cépage: | 77% Cab Sauv , 23% Cab Franc 77% Cab Sauv , 23% Cab Franc |
Élevage: | 19 Months, 60 % new French Oak |
Production: | 287 Cases |
Optimal drinking window: | 2015-2030 |
Kitoko Vineyard ~ Atlas Peak ~ Napa Valley
2012 is the first vintage Philippe produced from Kitoko Vineyard. On release, the wine showed beautiful aromas of raspberry, blueberry, anise and spices. A big, powerful wine that retains a sense of balance and elegance, today the wine opens with a minty, mossy overtone, exhibiting notes of preserved plums, mulberry, and blackberry. Once a very tannic wine, its structure has served it well and it retains a youthful personality.
Alcohol level: | 14.6% |
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Cépage: | 100% Cabernet Sauvignon |
Élevage: | 20 Months 70% new French oak barrels |
Production: | 250 Cases |
Critical acclaim: | 93 Points James Suckling |
Optimal drinking window: | 2020-2030 |
Kitoko Vineyard ~ Atlas Peak ~ Napa Valley
Characterized by a very dusty, complex goût de terroir, not unlike a Pritchard Hill wine, this wine brims with notes of marzipan and cherry jam that waft from the glass in a very expressive way. Broad, powerful yet silky and rich with complex notes of tea, earth, blackcurrants and spices. It has a great purity of fruit. Lively, lifted, structured. Last Tasted: June 2018.
Alcohol level: | 14.6% |
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Cépage: | 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. |
Élevage: | 20 Months in 80% new French oak barrels. |
Production: | 250 cases |
Critical acclaim: | 93 Points James Suckling, 92 Points Decanter |
Optimal drinking window: | 2018-2035 |
Kitoko Vineyard ~ Atlas Peak ~ Napa Valley
This wine is defined by its soft, silky texture that walks on little cat feet. Margaux-like, it’s seamless and juicy, with beautifully defined tannins. Sweet blackcurrant juice, huckleberries, anise, and blackberry make for a wine Robert Parker called “Stunning.”
Alcohol level: | 14.6% |
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Cépage: | 100% Cabernet Sauvignon |
Élevage: | 20 Months in 80% new French oak barrels |
Production: | 250 cases |
Critical acclaim: | 93 Points The Wine Advocate, 93 Points James Suckling, 93 Points Jeb Dunnuck |
Optimal drinking window: | 2019 - 2027 |
20% Atlas Peak, 30% Coombsville , 50% Napa Valley
This wine is a luscious mouthful of Cabernet with notes of dark chocolate, poached cherries, blackberry, and blackcurrants. It will age through 2028 handily. James Suckling loved its “Aromas of blackberries and blueberries with hints of sweet tobacco. Full body and solid and chewy tannins. Powerful finish. Structured and rich red.
Alcohol level: | 14.7% |
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Cépage: | 100% Cabernet Sauvignon |
Élevage: | 19 Months in new French oak barrels |
Production: | 250 cases |
Critical acclaim: | 93 points James Suckling |
Optimal drinking window: | 2019-2030 |