2008 Harlan Estate The Maiden
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Tasting notes
The 2008 The Maiden is a beautiful wine graced with exquisite finesse in its dark red berries, flowers and licorice. Gorgeous inner perfume and a super-refined personality are some of the qualities found in the 2008 Maiden. A weightless, subtle finish rounds things out nicely. Stylistically the 2008 Maiden is quite a bit more delicate – at times even fleeting – next to the 2008 Harlan Estate.
Critic scores
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The 2008 The Maiden is a beautiful wine graced with exquisite finesse in its dark red berries, flowers and licorice. Gorgeous inner perfume and a super-refined personality are some of the qualities found in the 2008 Maiden. A weightless, subtle finish rounds things out nicely. Stylistically the 2008 Maiden is quite a bit more delicate – at times even fleeting – next to the 2008 Harlan Estate. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2023. Vintages 2008 and 2009 are totally different in character at Harlan Estate. In 2008 the two wines are also quite far apart stylistically, while in 2009 the wines are much more closely linked. The 2010s I tasted from barrel were all raciness and pure excitement. Readers may want to take a look at my video interview on www.erobertparker.com with Bill Harlan in which Harlan discusses Promontory, his newest project. Tel. (707) 944-1441
Good full ruby-red. Very ripe aromas of gravel and chocolate. Sweet on entry, then more subdued in the middle, with a medicinal reserve to the flavors of redcurrant, plum and graphite minerality. I find this less sweet and giving today than the Bond Matriarch but more precise. This firmly tannic second wine needs four or five years of cellaring and may ultimately merit a higher score.
About the producer
Harlan Estate is one of the Napa Valley’s most prestigious wine estates. It is one of a handful of cult Cabernet producers, whose wines are some of the most expensive and collectable in the region.