Jay Kline

9.3

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of a few hours. The 2017 “Estate” pours a deep garnet color with a translucent core; medium viscosity with no staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of mostly ripe, black and red fruit: Blackberry, Mulberry, bruised strawberry, Bing cherry, red flowers, mushrooms, rich mahogany, sand mixed with rocky earth, and fine baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long, silky and slightly savory. Wouldn’t you believe it, another outstanding vintage from McHenry. Drink now through 2037. Only 100 cases made. — 14 days ago

Matt Forester

9.4

Bramble, blackberry, wild, touches of pyrazine. Winner of small scale couthern hemisphere Cab tasting. — a year ago

Bob McDonald

9.4

The 2nd of two vintage Cape Mentelle wines for Sunday lunch. A medium plus crimson red in colour. Notes of mulberry and herbaceous Margaret River characters. Even at 15 years a whiff of French oak. With time in decanter sweet red and black fruits revealed themselves on the medium plus bodied palate. Finishing with velvety tannins. A classic Margaret River Cabernet from a good vintage - the first of 4 bottles from the cellar. Loved this with a Porterhouse Waygu score of 4. Cape Mentelle was one of the early stars of Margaret River, with David Hohnen at the helm they won 3 Jimmy Watson trophies in a row in the early 1980s. Nowadays owned by LVMH. Had another 52 weeks later on 7th January 2024 with consistent notes. Still have 2 left. Have next in 2025 and then the last one anytime up to 2028. I ended up having the 2nd last one on 8th June 2024 with consistent notes as previous. I had the last one on 26/7/25 with consistent notes. No real change from previous tasting. Mulberry. — 3 years ago

Mark S.

9.0

Oak cider, acidic. Dry, Straight but with taste, citrus. Like Japanese sake. McHenry Hohnen Rocky Road Chardonnay Margaret River Valley, West Australia 23 @2695, Felicit, 250329-250628 — 5 months ago

Doug Powers

9.4

Still very MAD that when we visited Margaret River last December we did NOT visit McHenry Hohnen (in fairness, it was on my visit list of 12-15 wineries, and while we drove by, it was end of the day and so didn’t stop — STUPID ME!! 🤷) — Medium-dark purple, fair amount of sweet new oak, dark fruits, mulberry, blackberry aromas and flavors, BIG structure, quite tannic (but I’d contrast current day Margaret River tannic vs. Napa 1980s tannic any day, the latter generally more bitter), great depth and complexity, needs 10+ years aging, great juice!! — 9 months ago

with Jim

Jay Kline

9.1

The 2020 vintage presented many challenges for wine producers around the world but the fires in California added a layer of complexity that nobody needed. Many of the producers I enjoy didn’t even make red wine and if they did, it was never released. For some, the effects were more catastrophic. Unfortunately for McHenry Vineyard, the situation was the latter. Not only was the entire crop lost to smoke taint in the CZU Lighting Complex Fire but the winery and most of the structures on the property were destroyed. They even lost some of the majestic redwoods that have surrounded the vineyard for centuries. Despite the pandemic and the destruction, Brandon and Annelisa were resolved to rebuild. However, with the crop lost and nowhere to make wine for the foreseeable future, they had to enlist some help. In the near term, Brandon was able to purchase fruit from the Christie Vineyard in Corralitos (the longtime source for Storrs Winery & Vineyard) and John Benedetti of Sante Arcangeli came in the with the assist; just as he had in the production of the 2019 vintage. The fruit from Christie Vineyard is more Dijon heavy than McHenry’s estate vineyard but John did a great job of honoring the McHenry approach and style. The results were remarkable.

Popped and poured and enjoyed over a four hour period, the 2020 McHenry “Christie Vineyard” pours a bright, luminous ruby color with a transparent core. No obvious staining of the tears; medium+ viscosity. On the nose, bright ripened cherries, raspberries, roses, cloves and other spices. The wine is dry with medium tannins and medium+ acid. The finish is long. The overall impression is fresh, juicy and full of life. Like all vintages of McHenry, production is minuscule with only 150 cases produced.

As a sort of epilogue, Mother Earth giveth and taketh away. For all of the gifts that California’s climate brings to the production of wine, they are not immune to the whims of nature and these sorts of stories are becoming more and more common. With that being said, there have been at least two other occasions in McHenry’s past where they have been forced to purchase fruit or choose not release wine due to fire or pests. Unfortunately, this will probably not be their last but as long as they are determined to make beautifully balanced Pinot Noir way up on Bonny Doon Road, I will be drinking them. — 3 years ago

Mark S.

8.9

Earthy black fruits. Aged good flavor. McHenry Hohnen Rocky Road Cabernet Merlot Blend 18 @, AD, 250210 — 7 months ago

Jay Kline

9.1

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of a few hours. The 2022 “Swan Clone” pours a pale garnet color with a transparent core, medium viscosity and no staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is youthful with mostly tart red fruits: strawberry, raspberry, rhubarb, herbs and underbrush along with some warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long. Lean and fresh, this needs quite a bit of time to flesh out. Drink now with sights set towards the future but this will be better after 2027 and through 2042. Only 75 cases made. — 7 months ago

Byron Hewett

9.3

Stunningly gorgeous! A blend of 3 vineyards. — 2 years ago

Arecibo Message

9.2

Huh, who knew? It reminds me of the light cherry effervescence of McHenry, but a bit watered down and soda pop. Like pleasant drunky black cherry soda. — 5 years ago

with jo