Eric Kent www.erickentwines.com
1160 B Hopper Ave, Santa Rosa, CA 95403.
(510) 388-3510
When naming the winery, Kent Eric Humphrey was too modest to call it Humphrey and not liking the ring of Kent Eric, decided on Eric Kent. 2003 was their first vintage and they have steadily grown to produce about 2000 cases a year of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrah. Most of their wines are sold to their club members, who get first dibs to purchase at pre-sale prices, which are about 20% discounted. The success of the winery and club mailing list was demonstrated by Kent’s not having any wine for purchase during our visit. Fortunately for us, he was kind enough to give us an extensive barrel tasting of the 2010 vintage followed by samplings of four bottled wines from the 2008 and 2009 vintages.
'09 Sangiocomo Chardonnay label
90 2009 Eric Kent Sangiocomo Green Acres Hill Chardonnay (Sonoma Coast) $42
14.4% alc 150 cases
Overall: Elegant honeysuckle and green apple fruit with elegant toast in the background, supported by excellent acidity.VG 2008 Eric Kent Stiling Vineyard Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley) $42
14.7% alc 347 cases
Overall: Similar to the 2010 barrel samples meant for this bottling (see below), but not quite as lively and acidity-driven.VG 2008 Eric Kent Dry Stack Vineyard Syrah (Bennett Valley) $40
15.1% alc 197cases
Overall: Blackberries, game and earth.91+ 2009 Eric Kent Kalin’s Big Boy Blend Syrah $42
Overall: This is big stuff, yet very well balanced with blueberry and blackberry fruit, lots of black pepper and roasted coffee beans.
'08 Kalen's Big Boy Syrah label
2010 barrel samples:
Tasted 3 different Chardonnays, two were likely destined for the Sonoma Coast/Sangiocomo bottling with one having lively acidity, fruit and toast, similar to the 2009 above and the second being softer and more muted. The third was a single Clone with a slight Muscat hybridization giving it floral nuances. This is likely meant for the Russian River Valley bottling.
Tasted 4 different Pinot Noirs. Starting with two different lots from the Stiling vineyard, one being very Burgundian with lean fruit and lively acidity and the second having more forward fruit on top of the excellent acidity. The third was from the Freestone vineyard (Russian River) with tropical black fruit and herbal/floral components. The last was the ripest of the four (black cherries) with it and the Freestone possibly destined for blending.
Final Thoughts:
Kent really enjoyed letting us taste the striking differences between his wines from different vineyards, clones and even lots within the same vineyard. Dare I say, we enjoyed it even more! Fascinating stuff that’s all in a day’s work for the diligent, meticulous winemaker. Thanks Kent for sharing this wonderful experience with us.
Best of all, these wines were a joy to taste, with the least of them being very good (VG - high 80s).
I didn’t bother to number rate most of the wines, due to time limitations (I don’t like to speed rate ‘em), but the bottled ’09 Sangiocomo Chardonnay and ’09 Kalin’s Syrah both got my attention with the Kalin’s showing outstanding potential.
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