A British couple settled in the hills of Mendocino where they found land with schist-like Cote–Rotie soils on a windblown cool mountain top overlooking the Pacific Ocean, which would become their “estate” vineyard. With the assistance of Justin Smith (Saxum), Crole Meredith & Steve Lagier (Lagier-Meredith), Mike Officer (Carlisle) and Wells Guthrie (Copain) they set out to plant what has become a much regarded Rhone-varietal vineyard. Wells helped develop and maintain the vineyard. Under the tutelage of the great Roar winemaker (Scott Shapley) they have put some very good quality and well-priced wines on the wine map!
All three wines can mix & match for free shipping (to the same address)
Halcon 2019 Syrah “Alturas” Estate Yorkville Highlands, Mendocino
GGWC 37.99
FREE SHIPPING on 12 or more
Use code HALCON during checkout
The Alturas is a wonderful wine, offering up a youthful but superb bouquet of violets, cracked pepper, grilled meat and crunchy cassis. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, concentrated and tensile, with fine-grained tannins, a deep core of crunchy fruit and a long, sapid finish. While this is already delicious, it’s emphatically a young wine, and the real fireworks will begin when it has five years on the clock. Cropped at 1.25-tons per acre and fermented with 50% whole clusters, this lovely Syrah from Halcón wouldn’t be out of place in a flight of great Cornas. It’s also shockingly good value.
Jeb Dunnuck 94+ Points: “Showing beautifully, the 2019 Syrah Alturas has a touch of Hermitage in its rich, black fruit, scorched earth, bouquet garni, and smoked meat-like aromas and flavors. Showing more floral and violet notes with time in the glass, it’s medium to full-bodied on the palate and has lots of grippy, almost sappy tannins, terrific balance, and a great finish. It needs to be forgotten for 3-4 years, but this beautiful, elegant, layered, concentrated Syrah does everything right.”
Winery Notes: “The 2019 Halcón Syrah fruit was picked October 16th , just three days ahead of the previous year. As in 2018, the moderate high temperatures and very cool nights preserved acids and slowed sugar development, however, the crop was significantly below historical averages. The Syrah fruit came from various parcels of the Halcón vineyard, predominately the Chave selection, co-fermented with a slightly higher 5% Viognier. We again utilized 50% whole-cluster and aged the wine in neutral French oak puncheons. The low crop level led to a concentrated but still superbly balanced wine with the long hang-time giving fine tannin. The fruit is a little more upfront but still very fresh with lots of savory characteristics. It is a more open, slightly more intense version of the 2016 vintage and likely the best Alturas to date. Unfined, unfiltered. 13.7%. Only 190 cases.”
Halcon 2019 Petite Sirah “Tierra” Theopolis Vineyard Yorkville Highlands, Mendocino
GGWC 35.99
FREE SHIPPING on 12 or more
Use code HALCON during checkout
The 2019 Petite Sirah is another exceedingly elegant, seamless wine from Gordon’s estate vineyard. Deep purple-hued with notes of blueberries, California bay leaf, violets, and bouquet garni, it’s medium-bodied, elegant, and lightly textured, with the fresh, focused, streamlined style that’s present in all these new releases. It’s going to be reasonably approachable on release yet keep for 15 years, if you’re so inclined.
Jeb Dunnuck 93 Points: “The 2019 Petite Sirah Tierra is all varietal and comes from the Theopolis Vineyard in the Yorkville Highlands. This deep purple-hued effort gives up juicy, ripe, savory notes of ripe blue and black fruits, peppery herbs, graphite, and candied violets. It’s another pure, precise, impressive wine from Paul Gordon and his team that’s medium-bodied, has good, nicely integrated acidity, and notable tannins. It needs 2-4 years of bottle age and is going to keep for 15+.”
Halcon 2019 Pinot Noir “Oppenlander Vineyard” Mendocino
GGWC 36.99
FREE SHIPPING on 12 or more
Use code HALCON during checkout
The 2019 Halcon “Oppenlander” Pinot Noir opens with an amazing bouquet of crushed flowers, Bing cherries, licorice and spices that jump out of the glass. A very masculine wine, yet incredibly refined and juicy. If this were a Burgundy, I’d say Pommard! Full bodied wine, that is rich and very substantial in the fruit department – well-balanced with the right touches of acid where needed! Lush, with an incredible velvety-textured personality. Amazingly long finish loaded with fresh, lively fruit and silky tannins.
Jeb Dunnuck 91+ Points: “Coming from a site in Mendocino County, the 2019 Pinot Noir Oppenlander Vineyard offers a semi-opaque medium ruby color as well as a terrific nose of ripe dark cherries and redcurrants intermixed with foresty, earthy nuances, spice, scrub brush, and black tea notes. Medium-bodied on the palate, it has beautiful overall balance and a tight, focused texture carrying ripe tannins and a great finish. The finest vintage of this cuvée I’ve tasted, it’s going to benefit from 1-3 years of bottle age and will still be drinking well in a decade.”
Winery Notes: “The Pinot Noir Oppenlander Vineyard is gracious and nicely lifted. Lavender, spice, dark blue/purplish fruit and mint are all nicely lifted in a mid-weight Pinot that offers an intriguing mix of forward fruit and Mendocino energy. Medium in body, with lovely energy, the 2019 Pinot is a winner”
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Call 415-337-4083 or email frank@goldengatewinecellars.com for availability and priority allocation