Josh Jensen was famed for producing elegant, silky Pinot Noirs at Calera Wine Firm on the Central Coast.
Main wine critic Robert Parker Jr as soon as described Calera – the corporate that Jensen based in 1971 – as ‘California’s Romanée-Conti.’
Jensen accomplished undergraduate research at Yale, however his love of fantastic wine blossomed whereas finishing an MA in social anthropology at Oxford College within the UK. He was a key member of the rowing crew at each universities, however he nonetheless discovered time to develop a passion for wine at Oxford.
That took him on a whirlwind tour of Europe, the place he labored as a vineyard hand in varied areas, earlier than lastly touchdown a dream job harvesting for Domaine de la Romanée-Conti in Burgundy.
Jensen went on to work at Domaine Dujac, adopted by a stint at Château-Grillet within the Rhône Valley.
A Quest for Class in California
Upon returning to the US, Jensen got down to create distinctive wines that paid homage to the best Burgundies.
His Burgundian mentors insisted that really nice Pinot Noir and Chardonnay have to be grown in limestone-rich soils, as discovered within the Côtes d’Or.
He spent two years looking California for limestone, and he lastly settled on a wild patch of land positioned on the steep slopes of Mt. Harlan, a 3,278-foot peak within the Gavilan Mountains that divide Monterey and San Benito counties.
The next yr, whereas dwelling in a trailer on the distant property along with his spouse and her seven-year-old daughter, Jensen based Calera, named after the Spanish phrase for ‘limekiln’.
He didn’t have a paved highway, electrical energy or a telephone line, however he started doggedly planting his first three property vineyards. They yielded their first small crop in 1978.
The wines instantly loved crucial acclaim, showcasing ranges of construction and class hardly ever discovered within the New World on the time.
All through his winemaking profession, Jensen’s Pinot Noirs continued to effortlessly straddle the road between class and energy, benefiting from harmonious tannins and excellent complexity and focus.
He established his personal Calera Pinot Noir clone, and planted three extra vineyards on Mt. Harlan – Mills, de Villiers and Ryan – in addition to small blocks of Chardonnay, Aligoté and among the earliest plantings of Viognier in California.
He additionally started working with among the high vineyards on California’s Central Coast to make Calera’s Central Coast Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Viognier and a Vin Gris of Pinot Noir.
Jensen established Mt. Harlan American Viticultural Space (AVA) in 1990, making Calera one in all only a handful of wineries on this planet with its personal AVA.
He’s credited with kickstarting the Pinot Noir growth in California, and he garnered a number of accolades on both aspect of the Atlantic.
Jacques Seysses of Domaine Dujac described Calera’s wines as ‘probably the most Burgundian of Californian Pinots’, whereas journalist and wine author Jon Bonné described them as ‘the perfect of American winemaking’ when handing Jensen the San Francisco Chronicle’s 2007 Winemaker of the 12 months award.
‘They’re a reminder that probably the most extraordinary wines nonetheless come from a private quest for perfection, a willingness to brush again sceptics and persevere in untested locations,’ added Bonné.
A Lasting Legacy
In August 2017, Jensen determined to promote Calera to The Duckhorn Portfolio. He had helmed the mission for 43 years, and his three grown youngsters have been pursuing careers outdoors the wine trade, so the time was proper for a brand new chapter.
Following the sale, he served on The Duckhorn Portfolio’s board of administrators alongside his good buddy, Dan Duckhorn.
Alex Ryan, president and chief government of The Duckhorn Portfolio, described him as ‘probably the most distinctive and influential figures within the trendy American wine trade’ and ‘a visionary’.
‘I contemplate myself very lucky to have labored alongside him and gotten to know him,’ added Ryan. ‘For many who perceive the story of American Pinot Noir, his contributions can’t be overstated.’
‘He modified our trade eternally. Whereas his passing is an immeasurable loss for everybody who knew him, we honour and rejoice his life by persevering with his legacy.’
Jensen handed away peacefully at residence on Saturday, 11 June. He’s survived by his three youngsters – Silvie, Duggan and Chloe – and 5 grandchildren.
‘He was a real unique,’ stated Silvie. ‘He was bigger than life, a dreamer, an idealist, a beneficiant spirit, a person devoted to his associates, neighborhood, and household, and above all to the beliefs of friendship, reality, equity, good meals and wine, and stewardship of the land. We’ll all miss him tremendously.’
A remembrance e-book shall be accessible on the Calera Tasting Room for the subsequent 4 weeks for anybody wishing to share a message or condolences. The books will then be given to the Jensen household.
