Promontory by Harlan, Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, California, 2016

Overview of the Wine
In an unmarked territory, hidden beyond the upper reaches of Oakville’s southwestern borderlands, Promontory looms remote, raw, and replete with uncharted potential. Steeped in history yet largely overlooked in the twentieth century, the scale of this undiscovered territory evokes the impression of a small national park. These lands encompass an entire watershed, and embody all the hallmarks of an unparalleled winegrowing estate - diversity of soil, elevation, exposition, and climate – all within a single and dramatic expanse.

Building a dream of this scale requires a commitment much greater than that of one individual or even one lifetime. It is a pursuit that requires the experience and wisdom of the founding generation, the preparedness and conviction of the current generation, with consideration for the promise of the next.

Promontory extends their pioneering spirit of discovering something that can reveal, just possibly, a glimpse of the sublime.

Produced by Harlan.

Grape / Blend
Cabernet Sauvignon

Origin
Napa Valley, California

Winemaker Tasting Notes
The 840 acre (340 hectare) property, isolated from other vineyards in the region, was purchased by the Harlan family in 2008. H. William Harlan had discovered it in the early 1980s while hiking the ridge but had been unable to acquire it. The fruit had previously been sold to other wineries. There are now around 80 acres of vines split across numerous plots.

Though only one Cabernet Sauvignon wine is made, it is a complicated blend. Because of the variations of soil, exposure and elevation, up to 70 different passes are made through the vineyard to pick fruit in optimum condition. This results in 30 or more distinct component wines being made and aged in barrel for a year before blending.

The blended wine is then further aged for several years. Unusually for the USA, Promontory use large casks from Austrian oak.

A large winery was opened in 2017. It combines industrial practicality with large spaces designed to host visitors and events. This represents a deliberate departure from the less accessible production facilities of Harlan Estate and Bond, the other labels owned by the family.

100 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Deep garnet-purple, the 2016 Promontory comes barreling out of the glass with bold scents of black cherries, blueberry pie and licorice, leading to a slowly emerging core of crème de cassis, dark chocolate, black soil and truffles plus touches of cumin seed, mossy bark and beef drippings. The full-bodied palate is densely packed with muscular fruit, backed by a rock-solid structure of very firm, exquisitely ripe, grainy tannins and fantastic tension. The finish is both powerful and beautifully nuanced, hedonic and cerebrally gratifying.

Product size: 750ml