“When you drink wine that is 10 to 15 years old, my feeling is that the only one that can compete with the best Burgundies is Calera.”

So said Jacques Seysses of Burgundy’s Domaine Dujac, where Josh Jensen once apprenticed, and as quoted in a great article from San Francisco Chronicle Wine Editor Jon Bonné in naming Jensen the 2007 Winemaker of the Year.

I’m no Jacques Seysses (though I wish I were, if only to be able to drink his gorgeous, structured Morey-St.-Denis on a regular basis!), but I am someone who has a decent stash of Calera wines happily evolving in my collection. I love tasting the wines when they’re newly released (thanks Josh!), but the real pleasure comes in opening a bottle a number of years later to serve with a particularly worthy culinary creation or for the right guest.

I am also someone who regularly receives emails from readers interested in beginning a wine collection but not sure where to begin. Along with a couple of other specifics (Mayacamas Chardonnay and Caymus Cabernet would be on my California short list…), I always mention Calera for its Pinot Noir.

Jensen makes Pinots that age beautifully, with depth and tannins that make them even better after a number of years smoothing out in the bottle. 2005 was Calera’s 30th Anniversary vintage (a fact duly noted on the labels), and I think these would make great additions to any starter wine collection!

Calera 2005 Pinot Noir Mount Harlan Selleck Vineyard Thirtieth Anniversary Vintage ($75). Tightly wound at this stage, with cedar, mineral and tar wrapped around the dark plum and blackberry fruit. Focused, concentrated, with the long finish showing glimpses of the smooth, lush wine to come. Best from 2011-2018. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Calera 2005 Pinot Noir Mount Harlan Jensen Vineyard Thirtieth Anniversary Vintage ($60). Really pretty, feminine stuff, with elegant mineral weaving through the lush black fruits — plum, cherry — and aromatic, exotic spices. Picks up touches of ginger, vanilla and toast through the finish. Supple mouthfeel belies firm tannic structure. Should age beautifully. Tempting now, but best from 2010-2015. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Calera 2005 Pinot Noir Mount Harlan Reed Vineyard Thirtieth Anniversary Vintage ($50). Approachable now, this one is plush and supple, with heady aromas of red berry, cola, cedar and fresh herbs and spices — notes that repeat on the palate, along with layers of mushroom and sweet smoky notes. Elegant, complex finish. Ready to drink now and over the next three or four years. Locate this wine online or in your area.

Calera 2005 Pinot Noir Mount Harlan Cuvée Thirtieth Anniversary Vintage ($30). Slightly more sleek and silky than the 2004 vintage of this wine, with elegant dark cherry aromas and flavors, picking up baking spices, mineral and sweet tobacco on the finish. Ready to drink now and over the next three years. (Weekend Wine 10/07) Locate this wine online or in your area.