Harrington Winery

Pinot specialist Bryan Harrington has added some of California’s most notable vineyards to his stable of appellation and vineyard designated Pinots (Anderson Valley’s Wiley Vineyard, Sonoma Coast’s Hirsch Vineyard and Russian River’s Morelli Lane, to name a few). With this wine, Harrington joins other notable Pinot producers doing vineyard-designated bottlings with Brosseau Vineyards fruit – David Bruce, Brian Loring and Testarossa Vineyards, in addition to the grower's own estate bottling. The Brosseau family has been farming Pinot here in the Gabilan Mountains since the late 1970s, originally under contract to Dick Graff’s Chalone Vineyards. The cool climate and limestone-laden soils of the high elevation Chalone appellation yield Pinots that are sleek and well defined with a reputation for longevity. This wine, which is clearly built to go the distance, represents the qualities of the Chalone appellation perfectly.

Start with a wine that is actually the color of Burgundy. In the nose it is violets, leather and eucalyptus, with a hint of mint and mélange of understated spices. On the palate this is a long distance runner, lean bodied, steely, with sufficient mid palate grit to impress, and absolutely no exterior muscle baggage to handicap the long run this chappy was trained to compete for. Fruit flavors here are well married for just a 2006, restrained spice, some pepper, but no part of this wannabe champion long distance runner is stressing any other part. He is in the race with the best coaching imaginable. Where will this wine finish at the ten years pole, you're asking yourself. ’should I put some money on this chap? The future is foretold in the finish - of the wine, not the race. The astounding minerality evident as the '06 Brosseau slips off the back of your palate should send you back to your wine-bookie... make that a case...no make it two cases, to WIN!

Reviewed June 19, 2008 by Roger Dial.