Promontory (winery)

Promontory is a territory among the east-facing foothills of the Mayacamas mountains range, near Oakville, in California's Napa Valley. According to The San Francisco Chronicle, the vineyard does not lie within the boundaries of any American Viticultural Area (AVA). The closest neighboring property to the north, just a few hundred yards away, is Harlan Estate. The lands of Promontory are noted for their diversity in soil, climate, elevation and exposition. The terrain is rugged, likened to the Old West. The slopes average an incline of 40 percent, and less than ten percent of the property is planted to vineyards, Due to it straddling two seismic fault lines, the estate uniquely has all three different geologic formations: ==Production==

The Harlan family has described Promontory as a "missing shade of red", due to the wines being more rustic, tannic and acidic than those produced at Harlan Estate. Will Harlan noted that the soils are unique to the site, to the point that in cultivating the wine, practices used on the other family properties had to be reconsidered. The vineyards at Promontory are divided into blocks, which are individually assessed prior to the harvest. Grapes are selected in multiple passes to ensure ideal ripeness. Fermentation is done in separate batches, and there may be over 30 different fermentations. ==Reception==

The wine is critically acclaimed, with critics such as Sara Schneider of Robb Report noting that wines produced in the Promontory vineyard are "unlike any other produced in the Napa Valley". Georgina Hindle in a review for Decanter awarded the 2018 vintage a full 100 points, writing: "Gorgeous blackcurrant bramble fruit tones on the nose. A hint of plum, juniper, allspice, cinnamon, pepper and violets. Stylish and compelling, a real sense of purity from the first mouthful." Karen MacNeil of the Napa Wine Project wrote that the 2019 vintage is "deep ruby in the glass; there is an intriguing aromatic sweetness of both floral characters and fruit on the bouquet that we have not noticed on the several Promontory bottlings. It offers aromas of dark raspberry, blackberry and blueberries accompanied by scents of rose petals, violets and lavender.... The texture is gravelly, grainy and dusty with a lingering dry character." ==References==