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Our Wines: Pinot Noir

Our production of Pinot Noir uses grapes from Sonoma County, Russian River Valley, and Sonoma Coast.

Russian River Valley Pinot Noir: While primarily grown in the sandy Goldridge soil, which tends to produce Pinot Noir with flavors of red fruits and orange peel, this wine also illustrates some of the deep, brooding black cherry character generally found in the region's clay soils. These wines are bottled without fining or filtration, and should age gracefully for a handful of years.

2005: "This is what many of you have been waiting for (with varying degrees of patience). I believe this to be our finest Russian River Valley (RRV) bottling to date. It is a synthesis of some fantastic, 'complete' fermentation lots as well as some amazing, complimentary components from others. The goal is to achieve something exciting, complex, harmonious, age worthy, and compelling. It has its signature cherry cola and mysterious, fresh-loam aromas and flavors yet has finally 'resolved' enough of its substantial structure to allow us to perceive and enjoy the beginning of a long, happy relationship with this wine. I feel satisfied that at this time anyone who understands and loves Pinot Noir will find fulfillment in this wine upon opening. I will attempt to evaluate this wine on as close to a daily ritual as my better judgment will allow.

"There has been much hype over this vintage for Pinot Noir, so there is no need to pile on unnecessarily. Let me simply add that the material from this vintage was right down my alley stylistically. This wine and the previously released Sonoma County Pinot Noir were recently reviewed in a flight of 9 wines of the same vintage by California Grapevine (Feb-Mar 2008). They were the top two wines of the flight, most of which cost significantly more. 750 cases produced. $40 per bottle, $22 per half bottle, $85 per magnum."

-- Spring, 2008 newsletter

2004: "In a number of ways this reminds me of the Fort Ross 2001 Reserve Pinot Noir at a similar stage of development. We came through the heat spells of 2004 with a rich, concentrated wine that manages to keep its juicy acidity and even a sense of restraint. I believe it will continue to improve over the next few years, but have happily consumed bottles at home with dinner - all in the interest of research, of course. It has less Sassafras than the 2003, more centered on dark fruits and center palate strength. 800 cases produced. $36 per 750 mL bottle, $18.50 per 375 mL half bottle, $75 per 1.5 L magnum"

-- Library Tasting, 2006 newsletter

2003: "After experiencing one of the longest times in barrel we have ever given our Pinot Noir, this was bottled only last May, and has just begun to get used to living in a glass house, so to speak. I have learned to hold off on releasing the RRV bottling to restaurants and wine shops until about a year later, when the wine will be ready to begin its life of pleasure-giving the moment the cork is pulled, so you get to see it first. Similar to our RRV bottlings of the past, with a bit of that sweet, loamy earthiness and light herbal character as a counterpoint to the red fruits, this exhibits less of a cola note and more of sassafras character this vintage. I think the sassafras is expressed more in the 'banana belt' on the Sonoma Coast ridges, where the night time temperatures are typically not as low as the RRV slightly inland. In 2003, the vines must have vacationed on these ridges. 800 cases produced. $35 per 750 mL, $18 per 375 mL."

-- Library Tasting, 2005 newsletter

Update: "We have tried to time any reviewers' access to our wines until the wines are released to wine shops and restaurants. Therefore we can only talk about reviews on recently released wines rather than wines 'new to you' in this mailer. A prime example is our 2003 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir released to you last November, and now just making it to restaurants. Burgundy specialist Allen Meadows, aka Burghound describes it in his most recent issue: 'A ripe and beautifully complex nose featuring spice, sweet dark berries and violets complements the rich, full, and textured flavors that possess excellent complexity and real character…90/2009+' Last year, our 2002 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir was his first domestic wine of the month and is still listed at his website non-subscribers' portion along with selected Burgundies."

-- Autumn, 2006 newsletter

2002: "Similar to the situation in 1999 that led to the immensely popular ‘Big Brother’ and ‘Little Sister’ RRV Pinot Noir bottlings, I was faced with certain 2002 fermentation lots that seemed to ‘fight’ when combined with other particular lots. After trying many different approaches, they ultimately sorted themselves out into two different blends that I am very happy with. It was tempting to repeat the 1999 nomenclature, but that wouldn’t be fair to any of the wines, because while there are some similarities to the previous pair, there are important differences too.

"The first, larger 2002 blend is a great example of our style of RRV Pinot Noir with a nod (and maybe a wink) in the direction of ‘Little Sister.’ Beautiful redfruit character, precisely centered on the palate make this my current favorite of the two, and something I consider our typical RRV style. More complex than our 1999 ‘Little Sister,’ it is called simply ‘Russian River Valley.’ 860 cases produced. $35 per bottle, $18 per 375 mL, $72 per 1.5L."

-- Autumn, 2004 newsletter

Update: "The 2002 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir ($35) has received its share of good press as well. It was Burghound's first domestic 'wine of the month' last May, which I consider quite a compliment, since Mr. Meadows is such an authority on Burgundy and holds Pinot Noir wines to pretty high standards."

-- Autumn, 2006 newsletter

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2001: "With the sudden change from warm & dry weather to cool & foggy patterns in September, most Pinot Noir grapes in this region accumulated sugar very slowly in 2001. This allowed us to pick based on flavor and tannin ripeness without being worried about excessive alcohol in the resulting wine. Because of the long period of moisture on the fruit, not surprisingly, potentially destructive molds began to attack some of the grapes. Therefore, strict sorting of fruit and judicious, yet decisive use of SO2 at the destemmer (as in Burgundy) were essential to making superior quality Russian River Valley Pinot Noir in 2001. I was delighted during its entire time in barrel. It is very much like the 2000 version of this bottling except better balanced with less alcohol and ultimately smoother texture. While it will drink well soon after release, this is still a serious wine that will reward some bottle age. The accelerating interest in our Pinot Noirs has rather caught us by surprise. Fortunately, we were able to procure a larger area from the same vineyards as well as a new one so we can offer everybody more this year, and maybe have a couple of cases to show off next year too. Nearly 900 cases were produced. Release price: $35 per bottle. Half bottles ($18) also available."

-- Spring, 2003 newsletter

Russian River Valley ‘Laguna’ Pinot Noir: While primarily grown in the sandy Goldridge soil, which tends to produce Pinot Noir with flavors of red fruits and orange peel, this wine also illustrates some of the deep, brooding black cherry character generally found in the region's clay soils. It was bottled without fining or filtration and should age gracefully for a handful of years.

2002: "This, the other blend, has a bit more tannin, thicker texture, darker fruits and an interesting savory character on the finish suggesting it as the more masculine of the two, like ‘Big Brother.’ Since the three vineyards in the ‘Laguna’ bottling formed a triangle bisected by the Laguna de Santa Rosa, I lobbied hard among family and friends for the name ‘Laguna Triangle’. Despite the fact that, like the famous region near Bermuda you could also get lost in this wine, I could not generate enough enthusiasm among my closest critics to feel comfortable putting geometry on the (front) label. So, we settled on ‘Laguna’ instead. 580 cases produced. $35 per bottle, $18 per 375 mL, $72 per 1.5L."

-- Autumn, 2004 newsletter

Update: "The 2002 'Laguna' Pinot Noir ($35) has not been overlooked either (93 pts, Wine Enthusiast). During recent travels around the country, much to my surprise, I have discovered our wines have quite a solid reputation among Master Sommeliers, whose understanding of the wines of the world and their use in food service are tested by rigorous written and daunting blind-tasting examinations. While we do not make wines designed to win beauty contests, it is heartening to know some critics and wine service professionals understand and appreciate our efforts."

-- Autumn, 2006 newsletter

Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir: This Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir illustrates the pretty, forward characteristics often found in this appellation. The unfined and unfiltered wine exhibits sassafras, black pepper, and red fruit characters with a long, mouth-watering finish. It should reach a nice balance between youth and age at four to six years after the vintage.

2002: "Essentially from some ‘declassified’ lots of Fort Ross Vineyard Pinot Noir (vineyard designate will be released this November), this wine has nothing to apologize for… at all. It could have been another vineyard designate with some fancy name, but that well ran dry on the RRV Pinot Noirs below. It leans slightly more toward a classical Burgundian brightness and structure than the 2001 vintage. This is a fine example of what the region can achieve. 280 cases produced. $35per bottle, $18 per 375 mL."

-- Autumn, 2004 newsletter

2001: "This might have been bottled as another 'diaphanous' Hirsch, except that I liked it better with a small a percentage of one of the parts of the young Fort Ross Pinot Noir vineyard blended in. It would be easier to market this wine as the famous Hirsch vineyard designate (and for more $$) but I would have always wished that I had blended it instead. It is the product of rigorous selection and brutal declassification that tends to drive growers nuts. Alas, it is also our last vintage from Hirsch for the foreseeable future. Like the 1999 Hirsch 'Diaphanous', there is the telltale sassafras, delicate mid-palate of red fruits and toasty/earthiness. Unlike our highly structured 1999 Sonoma Coast during its youth, this 2001 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir has a delicate, graceful, lingering finish which lasts surprisingly long. 360 cases produced. $30 per bottle, $16 per 375 mL. Available now."

Sonoma County Pinot Noir: Pinot Noir from Sonoma County varies in its expression according to the locale where it is grown. This wine exhibits both the sassafras character of Pinot Noirs from the coast, as well as the cola of those from the area between Sebastopol and Santa Rosa. Light to medium structured, it has a central core of red fruits and lightly toasty oak that anchor both these coastal and inland elements.

2005: "This is our first Pinot Noir offering from this vintage. It was bottled in April, rather late by most folks' standards yet like many other local Pinot Noirs of the vintage, it will benefit from additional time in bottle. The 2005 vintage played perfectly into our normal sense of aesthetics and style, so it seemed a pretty easy vintage to work with. There seemed to be very little to do except assure that healthy fruit was harvested in its 'sweet spot' (aka 'optimum ripeness' - whatever that means) and handled appropriately. Rose petal, black pepper, Santa Rosa plum and thyme all take their aromatic turn. In the mouth, it begins broadly, yet the bright acidity rapidly pulls at the edges resulting in a bright, mouth-watering, food-friendly finish. 400 cases produced. $34 per bottle. Half bottles $18."

-- Library Tasting, 2007 newsletter

2004: "As I have explored various vineyard sites for Pinot Noir, I have had the luxury of employing an increasingly brutal blending selection for our various bottlings.

"Despite the very long, hot, dry spell experienced right at harvest, we were careful to harvest the Pinot Noir before it became 'cooked' or 'raisined.' Fortunately, we had previously made sure that the vines were not leaf-plucked to the point of fully exposing these delicate grapes in case of a late season heat spike, which we normally get to some minor degree. At the time, we did not know how critical this choice would be. Careful sorting at the destemmer was still needed and long, gentle extraction during fermentation gave us some graceful Pinot Noir which shows no trace of the problems that many late-harvesters and heavy extractors have complained of. This bottling is from Russian River Valley lots that spoke more of the county in general rather than any specific appellation.

"It has a color similar to the 2003 Russian River Valley PN. There are sesame and savory notes similar to the 2002 'Laguna' Pinot Noir but there is also a red-fruited strawberry/rhubarb theme as well. Combined as such, these give the impression of a fruit tart. Mouth-watering acidity reinforces this impression but then steps aside just enough to reveal its moderately thick texture. Then, coming full-circle, the red-fruits and mild earthiness/savory re-emerge on the finish with a nice touch of spiciness. It really invites another glass. 730 cases produced. $30 per bottle. Half bottles $16."

-- Autumn, 2006 newsletter

2003: "In 2003, I had a few fermentation lots that combined very well into a wine that reflects bits of Pinot personality from the entire county rather than the Sonoma Coast or the Russian River Valley. It has aromas of strawberry preserves, morello cherry, a hint of sassafras and well integrated oak that unfold into a very long, supple finish. Our first Pinot Noir that carries this designation, this is for those of you that have repeatedly requested a $25 Pinot Noir. Recently, I brought a bottle home for dinner, and Judi couldn't believe we weren't going to charge more for this. It is rare to find Pinot Noir of this quality for the price. I expect it to be at its best within a couple years from release. 250 cases produced. $25 per bottle. No limit. We're using Mel Knox's (the barrel broker) allocation method of 'pigs to the trough' (first come, first served)."

-- Autumn, 2005 newsletter

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