Just got a rather schmaltzy mailer akin to the letter I received from Promontory saying I was still not on their list. This letter though, was an offering for what appears to be another Harlan bottling called PENULTIMATE. Perhaps declassified Promontory? Says for its inaugural release, they will be offering a three-bottle vertical of their early vintages come next week.
Anyone else heard of this project or received the mailer? My guess is $300 a bottle.
Received the mailer. Heard it’s a second wine coming from Promontory’s younger vines. First vintage was in 2012, but unreleased. Price point at $325, I believe.
At that price, you can’t afford not to buy it. It’s like having an uncle in the wine business!
Just got the mailer today. Interested. if below $350 per bottle, with those vines even if younger, I feel like it’s intriguing enough for me to buy…
Haven’t seen my mailer yet. Interesting though. I’m not experienced enough to know the difference between younger/older vines, just that I like older vine juice and that no one really advertises younger vine wine… May just stick with my Promontory allocations unless there’s a compelling reason to jump on this.
Who is purchasing this “second wine” for over $300? At that price you could have almost any Napa wine (I mean, Shafer Hillside Select with a decades long track record is at that same price).
I’m sure people buying this are in the money is no object group and this is probably a candidate for a Tuesday night wine for them, but for the regular folk I just don’t get it.
f it’s 90% as good as Promontory I may try one, but if its a far cry from it, I definitely would pass.
I’m gonna buy - should be great. So is the Mascot a “third” wine now?
Mascot was always a third wine. Bond and Harlan have their own second wines.
“For the inaugural release, we will be offering a three-bottle vertical of our early vintages – 2013, 2014 and 2015 – in wood case. Produced in small quantities, Penultimate will only be made available directly from the winery.”
How much is Promontory at release?
When I received the 2015 Promontory allocation, it was $1800 for a 3-pk, or $600 per.
Got it, too. Honestly, very little info, but they wax poetic about philosophies and high visions. Not sure what they’ll cost, but I’m sure it will be too much.
But I did buy Mascot early summer only because it was just at my deal breaker cutoff, $100/bottle. They have not arrived yet.
The full pitch:
“Penultimate” embodies a core set of principles that guides our work at Promontory. At the outset, the rugged topography and diverse geology of this hidden, untamed territory-unique within the heart of the Napa Valley-presented an unfamiliar and and enigmatic winegrowing environment. Consequently, our approach here has been one of continual discovery, as we gradually decipher, block by block, the elusive character of this land.
Our endeavors at Promontory began with human intentionality; but over the years, as we worked the land, it changed us – our thinking, our concept of time, and eventually our behavior. The territory emanated an irresistible magnetism; and the deeper we delved, the stronger grew our conviction that the property comprised a world quite separatefrom the remainder of the Napa Valley. This realization taught us to let go of our preconceptions and, instead, be guided by nature on a more enlightened philosophical journey – one destined to reveal the soul of this place. In pursuing this aim, we continually search and attempt to understand as granularly as possible the contours and behavior of this diverse terrain,and we adjust our approach for each distinct plot. This, to us, begins to have the feel not of viticulture, but almost of gardening – to the point of caring for each vine as an individual. Although the land guides our thoughts and actions each day of the growing season, the results may only be assessed once a year, with the culmination of each vintage. These elaborations may be likened to an artist’s sketch, which delineates the form and shading of the composition, drawing closer and closer to the essence of the final work. This is Penultimate: a latent beauty contained within the raw elements of this wild expanse. Penultimate illuminates these ongoing studies, painting an elemental portrait of the complex landscape – at once literal and sensory – that Promontory renders so fluently.
To be fair, you could say this about much wine marketing.
Even if you’re not particularly hunting deals, you can actually buy a lot of Bond around $300-350/bottle. Even some Harlan is in that “ballpark” (500’s). I just don’t see a compelling reason to buy a young 3 pack of an unknown second wine at 350/pop when here are some WMJ averages + lows (and I literally just searched these 4 wines blindly without knowing how they’d shake out … not cherrypicking at all):
'07 Bond St Eden: $330 (low $245)
'06 Harlan: $517 (low $393)
'10 Bond Melbury: $319 (low $240)
'13 Bond Quella: $310 (low $248)
Maybe everyone who buys it will come out looking like a genius since 13-15 are good years, and maybe this wine takes off and is looked at as just the 4th “headline brand” instead of a second wine for Promontory … but man that’s a tough sell.
This offer has captured my interest…for the right price of course. Anything above $750 for a 3 pack will be a hard sale. I regularly buy Harlan Maiden and Bond Matriarch. For a 3 pack they are $900 & $495 respectively. They are really great “second wines”. I guess we will see what the price is tomorrow.
FYI, I got an email this AM.
Three bottle vertical in wood: '13,'14,'15 = $975.00
Has options to buy 1, 2, or 3 sets.
Hope this helps,
Michael
What is the mailing list price for Bond and Promontory currently? This is priced more like a new flagship brand than a second wine. That’s priced higher than the second wines for Bond and even Harlan.
I’m ante Penultimate.
(out of my league)