Made from the younger vines of Harlan Estate, BOND, and Promontory, The Mascot shares a unique glimpse into the evolution of our winegrowing estates. Although I grew up running around the winery, hand-turning de-stemmers, and eating grapes off the vines in our backyard, I never thought I’d discover my own passion in making wine. My family has been in the business longer than I’ve been around, but it was only a handful of years ago that curiosity lead me beyond the event horizon of this world. It began with the experience of learning the complexities of blending wine in 2008, and progressed steadily until I found myself working in the cellar, handling barrel fermentation throughout the harvest of 2012. The Mascot began early on as an experiment, after talking the family and winemaking team into sparing a few barrels of wine - produced from our younger vines - to explore a blend of my own. In the first few years, before it had a label or a name, it was just a wine shared with friends and family. It wasn’t until the 2008 vintage, our first official release, that we had enough to share with new friends. This cabernet is a hedonistic blend of power and balance; expressive and approachable early in its life, with potential to evolve well into the future. Ready to drink upon release, it will age for decades given the opportunity. -Will Harlan