The 2008 Pinot Noir Jensen Vineyard bursts onto the palate with a rush of intensely perfumed fruit. It shows fabulous balance of fruit, structure and acidity as it covers the palate with dazzling purity and breathtaking sense of balance. A soft, caressing finish rounds things out in style. This is a super-refined showing from Josh Jensen. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2023. I was deeply impressed with the wines I tasted from Josh Jensen and Calera. Vintage 2008 was not an easy one, as a severe spring frost reduced yields to less than one ton per acre. Most of the Pinots are made with 100% whole clusters. I am not sure each of these sites is ideally suited to such a high percentage of stem inclusion, especially in this vintage, but time will tell. Calera has what are easily the most informative back labels I have ever seen, with much more information and detail on each wine than I can reproduce here. Kudos to Josh Jensen for providing his customers with the maximum level of detail one could ever ask for. Unfortunately I was not able to taste the Chardonnays, but I will report on those wines as soon as possible. Tel. (831) 637-9170; www.calerawine.com

Sweet and jammy in youth, with robust flavors of raspberry and cherry jam. The sweetness is balanced by crisp acidity and firm tannins, as well as a minerality that must come from the terroir. A feminine wine, Calera’s ’08 Jensen should gain in the bottle over the next eight years or so. ——S.H.(12/31/2011)—— 91