Calera - Great Californian Pinot Noir & Chardonnay

Taking its name from the Spanish word for lime kiln - Calera has been at the forefront of New World Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wine making for nearly half a century, but as they say ‘taking their cue from the great Domaines of Burgundy’.

Situated some 37 miles south of San Francisco in the Gavilan Mountains of California's Central Coast, Josh Jenson first planted vines in 1974 and released the first single vineyard Pinot Noirs in 1978 – followed by their first Chardonnay release in 1984. Since then they have consistently produced what many call the finest Pinot Noirs in the New World. 

Focusing on Pinot Noir from six single vineyards in the Mt Harlan AVA and three white vineyards, each wine is beautifully individual and shows off the unique terroir of each site. Adding to those core wines are the brilliantly affordable releases of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from the wider Central Coast region. Both priced at under £25 on the table, we think it would be very hard to better these wines.

We are pleased to offer a selection of the 2014 and 2015 vintages for sale. 2014 was the third drought in a row for the Central Coast and as a result yields were hugely affected and very small amounts of wine produced. The wines are rich and firm, spicy and with superb structure, Calera tells us, these have a long life ahead of them. The 2015’s are simply exceptional, an almost perfect growing season and earliest harvest on record at Calera produced low yields again, but hugely concentrated fruit. The 2015’s are beautifully bouquet, but with a firm structure that again requires cellaring. 

We cannot recommend these wines highly enough, they are utterly fantastic and with Burgundy prices going only one way – a brilliant alternative. 

 

 

 

 

2014 Calera Central Coast Pinot Noir
£220 per 12 in bond.
91 Points (Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media)

The 2014 Pinot Noir (Central Coast) is both impeccable and absolutely delicious. Sweet, floral and open-knit, the Central Coast is also a fabulous introduction to the Calera house style. Beautifully perfumed and gracious, the 2014 offers striking aromatics and plenty of bright fruit to match its mid-weight, chiseled personality. Drink it over the next few years.

 

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2014 Calera Pinot Noir Mills Vineyard
£275 per 6 in bond.
93+ Points (Wine Advocate)

The 2014 Pinot Noir Mills Vineyard offers up a sun-kissed bouquet of cassis, pomegranate, plum preserve, spice and vanilla pod, framed by a touch of new oak. On the palate, it's full-bodied, richly tannic and firm, with some fine-grained but firm tannins asserting themselves on the finish. Harvested between September 3-18, this was cropped at a tiny yield of 0.54 tons per acre (the historic average for this site is 1.26), and it’s almost brutal levels of concentration and extract make it hard to read. What's clear is that several years of patience will be necessary.

 

 

2015 Calera Pinot Noir de Villiers Vineyard
£275 per 6 in bond.
94 Points (Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media)

The 2015 Pinot Noir de Villiers Vineyard is powerful and dense yet also tightly wound at this stage. Even so, the flavours are bright and precise, with a good bit of energy pulsing through the wine. The intense fruit and floral notes are quite appealing, but another few years in bottle should be highly beneficial. All things considered, the de Villiers s one of the more overt Pinots in this range. The 2015 was done with 50% whole clusters, which, as usual, is on the lower side for the estate wines.

 

 

2015 Calera Pinot Noir Mills Vineyard
£312 per 6 in bond.
93 Points (Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media)

The 2015 Pinot Noir Mills Vineyard is the one Pinot in this range planted on own-rooted vines. The bouquet alone is exotic, with tons of bright floral notes that soar from the glass. Intensely perfumed red cherry and berry flavors add to the wines exotic yet totally beguiling personality. In this range, the Mills is differentiated by its penetrating aromatics and overall freshness.

 

 

2015 Calera Pinot Noir Ryan Vineyard
£270 per 6 in bond.
92 Points (Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media)

The 2015 Pinot Noir Ryan Vineyard is dense and powerful in the glass, with a real sense of gravitas that gives the wine its somber feel. Vertical in construction and yet also dense, the Ryan is another wine that is going to need bottle age to be at its very best. There is plenty of potential though, that much is obvious, although the elevated ripeness and hints of slightly roasted fruit are impossible to fully escape.