It is hard to imagine it
in a town with a population of 18, but
in the little hamlet of Harmony, California,
there is much to talk about. Harmony Cellars
Winery is the labor of love that was born
here in 1989. Founded by Kim and Chuck
Mulligan, the couple has created a delightful
winery on land that has been in Kim's
family for more than three generations.
Like
many other artisans, the idea for Harmony
Cellars was an instinctive reaction by
Chuck and Kim after a day spent tasting
wines in Santa Barbara County. "I
turned to Kim and said wouldn't it be
fun to retire one day and start a small
winery?" said Chuck, "I can
do this. I can taste the cherry flavors
and the oak. I'm good with my hands. I
could make wine!"
During that inspirational
trip, a tasting room manager suggested
that Chuck enroll in winemaking and viticultural
classes at Fresno State. It wasn't long
before Chuck found himself knee-deep in
grapes at Estrella (now Meridian) in Paso
Robles. After five years of learning the
craft, Chuck ventured out on his own and
created Harmony Cellars.
Getting the winery up and
running wasn't easy. At first glance,
the rustic nature of the production building
gives no hint as to its contents. All
the production elements are neatly concealed
within the building. The stringent requirements
of the California Coastal Commission may
be partially responsible for the process
taking two years to complete, but it was
well worth it. Harmony Cellars, despite
its isolation – the next winery is
100 miles further along Route 1 –
sells nearly 65 percent of its wines at
the winery. The only thing harder than
finding the winery may be finding the
wines. For those who do find the wines
you will be graced with beauty and balance
in a bottle.
In July 2003, The California
Wine Club selected the Harmony 2000 Chardonnay
and the Harmony 2000 Syrah as its wines
of the month. To learn more about the
winery, visit www.harmonycellars.net.
. This wine has
won gold medals in competition, including
the 2002 Los Angeles County Fair and the
International Eastern Wine Competition.
The fruit for this particular Chardonnay
comes from two Paso Robles vineyards:
the Archie Hanson Vineyard in the cool
Templeton Gap provides great fruit flavors
and body, while the Chandon Valley Vineyard
adds more texture and lemony notes to
the wine. The fruit was pressed in whole
clusters and allowed 24-48 hours to settle
in the tank. Barrel fermentation follows
in 100 percent American oak, 35 percent
in new oak. The wines are left in the
barrel for more than 1 year. The wine
is drinking great now, but will continue
to improve in the bottle for another 18
months. Total case production: 2000
. A gold
medal "Best in Class" winner
at the West Coast Wine Competition, this
wine is an immediate palate pleaser. The
fruit comes from warm climate vineyards
on the eastside of Paso Robles and has
notable cherry and spice flavors. The
grapes were gently crushed and then fermented
for five days with Pasteur red yeast.
The fruit was then pressed and allowed
to age for more than 1 year in a neutral
wood. The wine then aged an additional
four months in American oak of which 20
percent were new barrels. According to
Chuck, "this is a warm climate Syrah.
It is made in a lighter style – more
like a Claret – as opposed to the
dark inky wines many people associate
with Syrah. The wine will go great with
barbecued steaks, salmon, or even pizza."
Total case production: 1240
The
California Wine Club has provided this
wine country story. For more information
visit www.cawineclub.com
or call 1-800-777-4443.
