2012 Chardonnay Alpine Vineyard

Proprietor Kevin Harvey and winemaker Jeff Brinkman have turned out another stellar set of wines. The 2013 Pinot Noirs have largely turned as I had expected, but I was also quite taken with the 2012 Chardonnays and Syrahs, all of which merit serious attention. Despite an unusually cool May that appeared to reduce the crop early on, yields in 2013 turned out to be higher than in 2012. Some of the 2013 Pinots have softened a bit since I last tasted them about eight months ago, which leads me to think they may drink better earlier than I had originally envisioned. Time will tell. I also tasted a handful of 2014s from barrel that will be offered as futures within the next few months. Based on the wines I saw, I will not be surprised if the 2014 Pinots surpass the 2013s. The only issue is going to availability, as production is down sharply vis-a-vis 2012 and 2013. Kevin Harvey has brought a savvy, long-time collector's palate and a total commitment to excellence to Rhys, along with the significant personal resources to execute on his vision. With each passing vintage, the wines continue to improve to the point where comparisons to the best estates in California are increasingly less relevant. Rhys is world class. It's as simple as that.

Once again, I tasted a large number of wines with proprietor Kevin Harvey and winemaker Jeff Brinkman. The Rhys 2012 Pinots are just as gorgeous from bottle as they were from barrel. As fabulous as the 2012s are, the 2013 are at least as good, if not better. While the 2012s are open and supple, the 2013s have a touch more energy, power and minerality. Readers who can find the wines should not hesitate, as these are quite possibly the best back-to-back vintages in Rhys's short history thus far. It is impossible not to marvel at what Harvey and his team have achieved in just a few years. The Rhys Pinots aren't just modern-day reference points for California, they are now among the greatest Pinot Noirs being made anywhere in the world.

Kevin Harvey and his winemakerJeff Brinkman, who aren't exactly prone to overstatement, told me that 2012 was "a godsend after 2011, in a yield sense," but they're not writing off '11. Harvey describes his '11s as wines that show their place while 2012 was an example of Mother Nature at her benign best, "and definitely too generous if you wanted to go that way." Harvey's investment in the Bearwallow vineyard up north, in the Anderson Valley, is a big focus here right now. Brinkman said that moving outside their home zone of the Santa Cruz Mountains has given the team the chance to further expand the game of "soil plus exposure plus climate plus rootstock plus clone" and what comes from it (he compared it to 3-D chess) by getting to understand a place that's completely removed from their home base.The 2012 vintage brought Rhys the highest acidity levels in its fruit to date, by the way.