Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
A tantalizing mix of perfectly ripe, juicy raspberry and tangy black cherry flavors, with a rich, powerful loamy element of fresh earth, clay and spice. Licorice, kirsch and spice box notes detail the wine, which is delicate and layered, with a creamy texture.
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Connoisseurs' Guide
This fleshy, fairly full-bodied working is very much made in the high-extract, high-ripeness style, and, while its strength may not lie in refinement, it is long on both richness and very deep fruit. For all of its considerable substance, it is never heavy and sports fine acid balance, and, if just a bit of heat creeps in at the finish, it is its long-lasting, ripe-cherry fruit that outdistances all else and lets it partner with savory roasts.
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Wine Enthusiast
This is quite a good Pinot Noir, although despite the tannin-acid tightness it’s not likely to improve beyond 2011. It’s dry and silky and delicious in cherry, cola, spice and sandalwood flavors, and there’s even a touch of chocolate.
As early as the 1970s Carneros became known as a source of terrific Pinot Noir, and was one of the first California regions to gain such a reputation. The combination of sunny days, cooling fog and thin clay soils are tailor-made for the variety. Another factor in Pinot Noir’s prominent place here is vintners’ willingness to experiment widely. The history of the grape in Carneros is marked by continuous research into clonal variations, viticultural techniques and site selection. Careful evaluation over time has revealed a signature flavor profile as well. Complex aromas and flavors of cherry, red berry, spice, earth and cola appear time and again in Carneros Pinot Noir. To this day the appellation remains one of California’s standard bearers for the variety.