Rich Bluth

9.2

at peak, subtle and excellent — a month ago

Brad Jensen

9.5

Big body, dark color of deep rose, with violet hues on the edges and long, lingering legs. Initial taste, VERY dry, with grippy tannins and pronounced pepper notes. The wine slowly opened up though, the tannins loosened their grip but never let it go, the nose bloomed into a more floral and deep velvet expression, with notes of magic marker and candle smoke, the palate showed its composition, with lingering acidity, dark cherry and plum notes, and a floral but lingering finish, with a mineral spine that lasted forever. Very special on a special occasion, the day Tiva “legally” became a Jensen! — 2 years ago

with Tiva

Eric Urbani

9.2

Five single-vineyard CA Pinots vs 5 Burgs: Gevrey-Chambertin, Vosne-Romanee + three 1er Crus Beaunes. All 2005s. Rob Jensen, owner, and Sue Ryan, lead wine educator at Testarossa joined our group for the tasting. Great wine, meaty — 3 years ago

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9.3

The 1989 Pinot Noir Jensen Vineyard from Calera is a real surprise. I am inexperienced with respect to mature Californian Pinot Noir, and Josh Jensen’s wine was a revelation. Candied red fruit commingles with blood orange and Kirsch, unmistakably not from Burgundy because it is too rich, but it is certainly not over-ripe. The palate is overly sweet and Californian on the entry. Still, there is structure behind this Pinot extant after more than three decades, with quite plush raspberry fruit on the quintessentially Californian finish. It's just a lovely wine that is, once again, perfect to drink now. (Neal Martin, Vinous, April 2024)
— 7 months ago

Brent Young

9.3

Legendary Loss

Calera founder Josh Jensen passed away earlier this month after a lifetime of achievements that included elevating American Pinot Noir on the world stage

Day 1
Served this with the Vinloq System
👃Bold, sexy, purple fruit floods from the glass endlessly
👅Spicy purple fruit, blood orange, sasafras, and licorice. A gentle tannic pull on the smoke tinged finish. Drinking well

Remaining wine was Slow Decanted in my refrigerator

DAY 10
👃Sweet, spicy, purple fruits with more vanilla, oak, vegetal, and tobacco notes than Day 1
👅Same sweet plummy fruit with tobacco and licorice. Fruit forward but balanced. Soft tannins and no heat

I did not have a preference for Day 1 or Day 10. There were more oak notes on both the nose and palate on Day 10. Two solid showings👍This is solidly in its drinking window & will be there for quite some time 🍷 — 2 years ago

Eric Urbani

9.3

Five single-vineyard CA Pinots vs 5 Burgs: Gevrey-Chambertin, Vosne-Romanee + three 1er Crus Beaunes. All 2005s. Rob Jensen, owner, and Sue Ryan, lead wine educator at Testarossa joined our group for the tasting. This Siduri made a strong showing at #4. — 3 years ago

Deborah M

9.1

Won’t you be my neighbor? ~ Mr. Rogers

The 2021 My Favorite Neighbor Blanc is a Paso Robles Chardonnay produced by Eric Jensen. This wine is delicious. Lively nose, racy acidity, layered complexity, and balance are just a few good descriptors for this wine. I would like to see how this wine evolves with a couple years of bottle age. It would be smart to add this to your list.

This wine falls in the “I’m glad I grabbed a few of these” category.
— 2 years ago

Rich Bluth

9.3

absolutely amazing balance, Josh Jensen RIP — 2 years ago

Eric Urbani

9.4

Five single-vineyard CA Pinots vs 5 Burgs: Gevrey-Chambertin, Vosne-Romanee + three 1er Crus Beaunes. All 2005s. Rob Jensen, owner, and Sue Ryan, lead wine educator at Testarossa joined our group for the tasting. This was Siduri’s Gary’s vineyard Pinot, which I thought rivaled the Testarossa — 3 years ago

Eric Urbani

9.4

Five single-vineyard CA Pinots vs 5 Burgs: Gevrey-Chambertin, Vosne-Romanee + three 1er Crus Beaunes. All 2005s. Rob Jensen, owner, and Sue Ryan, lead wine educator at Testarossa joined our group for the tasting. Our #3 — 3 years ago