2012 Harlan?

Never had this wine… must’ve signed up a while back and forgot about it.

Anyhow got an email and got offered some 2012 Harlan Estate (and 2011 Maiden). When i clicked through the link, it shows as $650/btl.
holy mother… I guess i don’t drink enough trophy wines…
is this anywhere close to be being worth the $650 price? I don’t mind buying 1 just to try it but damn that’s expensive (to me at least)

Thinking the exact same thing. I recall a few people mentioning thinking the 2012 specifically may be worth the tariff but I’m pretty sure that’s an increase from last year…

By six Hobel Cabs and you will have a better wine for six distinct times.

That’s almost a buck a ml. $175 a glass. Not sure any ca wine is worth that.

What happens if you really really like it? Might be better to not know.

Keep in mind that these are all technically a “request”. I ordered a bunch last year as I had some friends looking to purchase some of my allocation. I ordered several bottles of the Estate, some Mags, and several Maiden. I ended up getting 2 Maiden and 1 Harlan Estate.

The way they do things in my opinion is ridiculous as you really never know what you will get regardless of your order until all orders are in and they decide who gets what.

That said. I think 2012 will be a fantastic year for them as well as many others. $650 is high, but compared to some others like Screaming Eagle its still much lower.

Isn’t Harlan the second highest price wine in ca behind se?

But a Euro or Aussie wine would be?

So four Schraders are $700 while one Harlan $650.

Bill,

I’m curious have you actually tasted either wine? For the record- I actually bought the hobel and not the Harlan but your definitive statement is amusing…I’m guessing you havent tried either wine.

-paul

I doubt the Hobel will be better than the Harlan. I also will point out that no wine is worth $650, not even close IMO. However it could be a good investment.

I was on the Harlan list from the beginning. Great stuff, one of my favorite California cabs. But I dropped off the list when they crossed the $500 mark. No wine is worth that much to me, unless it’s a birth or anniversary vintage of something really special.

Everyone’s threshold is different, though, and there’s no right or wrong to it. If $500 a bottle is something you would consider spending on a great bottle of wine, Harlan is a worthy example of one of the best that California has to offer.

As to relative value vs other Cali cabs, I find pretty much the same amount of pleasure in a $200 bottle of Shafer Hillside Select. YMMV.

I have had neither from 2012. But, I have had my fair share of Harlan over the years (on other folks’ dime) and the style is not for me any more. The Hobel to me is the better wine stylistically and six would give me more pleasure and there would be no buyer’s remorse with that absurd price.

If VA and over extraction makes the better wine, then you are probably correct. As for an investment at $650…good luck on that front.

I didn’t say for certain that its a good investment, but rather “it could be a good investment”. It continues to amaze me what some people are willing to pay for Harlan down the road, particularly in vintages where it scores 100 pts, did it not receive a perfect score in 2012?

Mr Brown makes pretty darn extracted wines himself!

Harlan doesn’t auction for much more, if any, than it’s release price. Even a 100-pointer isn’t likely to produce much profit for flippers when the initial cost is $650 plus tax and shipping.

Bingo.

Only Screaming Eagle seems to be the guaranteed flip wine these days.

I dropped off when they went to $225.

If you’re willing to do a full monty at that altitude, consider an Abreu Thorevilos. You might be able to snipe a bottle at that price for the '12, or if a generous soul will part with a bottle from their allocation at cost it’ll run you even less. While Harlan in its own right is singular, it’s of a style that has its dissenters. Proportionately there are fewer–if any–dissenting opinions of Thorevilos. I’m just rambling at this point…

All the best,

Kenney

True, Kenney. I dropped off the Abreu list when they went above my threshold, but like Harlan, it’s an awesome wine. If you are willing to spend that much.