Rochioli Big Hill Pinot Noir 2019
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Robert
Parker
Product Details
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
The newest member of the Rochioli Single vineyard selections, this intense wine has dark berry fruit, crushed rose petal, vanilla and spice in the nose with rich blackberry and vanilla flavors that are full and balanced by refined tannins and firm acidity.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale ruby-purple, the 2019 Pinot Noir Big Hill offers spicy tea leaves, licorice, earth, bergamot and iron, with top notes of floral perfume. The palate is plush, silky and super fresh with intense, spicy flavor layers and a long, uplifted finish. Its intensity, ripe tannins and bright freshness suggest this will be very long-lived in the cellar.
Other Vintages
2017-
Robert
Parker
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Robert
Parker
The Rochioli family has been growing grapes on its 136-acre ranch since the 1930s. In 1987, Tom Rochioli created the first Rochioli Estate Pinot Noir which Wine Spectator named “The Best Pinot Noir in America.” The Rochioli Vineyard is situated in a very diverse part of the Russian River Valley promoting diversity in the soil types, proximity to the ocean, as well as the contours of the valley, allowing for morning fog and cool evening breezes.
With three generations of dedication to the land, Rochioli Vineyards & Winery has earned the reputation as one of Sonoma County’s finest wineries. The decades-long tradition of outstanding vintages continues today with wines that consistently receive rave reviews and 90+ scores. Always in demand, always revered and always rated among the best varietals sought after around the world.
While the Russian River Valley is a large appellation with multiple climate zones and soil types, it is best known for cool-climate varieties, with Pinot Noir as the most celebrated. The grapes benefit from a reliable late afternoon flow of Pacific Ocean fog through the Petaluma Gap and along the Russian River Valley that ensures slow and steady ripening and the preservation of grape acidity. Today many of California’s most highly regarded Pinot Noir vineyards are in the Russian River Valley, along with its sub-appellation, Green Valley.
Historically Russian River Valley Pinot Noirs had bright red fruit and delicate earthy, mineral notes. But changes in viticultural and winemaking practices have led to stylistic changes in some of the region’s wines. Adjustments to canopy management, among other techniques, have resulted in riper fruit and bolder wines as well. These show flavors of black cherry, blackberry, cola, spice and darker, loamy earth tones, accenting traditional Pinot Noir notes of strawberry, raspberry and light cherry.