Winemaker Notes
Blue Farm takes its name from the farmhouse at Anne Moller-Racke’s home and vineyard in Carneros. In 2001, Anne planted seven acres of pinot noir divided into three blocks dedicated to the Swan clone and two Dijon clones. The Dijon 115 contributes perfume and power; the Swan fills the wine’s middle, adding body and textural layers, and the Dijon 667 lends structure. Together they produce one complete wine from the Anne Katherina Vineyard.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Not harvested until September 6 and brought up in 70% new French oak, the 2017 Pinot Noir Anne Katherina offers a very pretty, pure, focused, and medium-bodied style as well as notes of ripe black cherries, tart strawberries, spring flowers, and forest floor. Tight and vibrant on the palate, with a notable sense of freshness, it’s one of the more Burgundian style releases in the lineup. It blossoms beautifully with time in the glass and will continue drinking well for a decade.
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Wine Enthusiast
Tangy berry fruit is laced in black tea, earth and lifted acidity in this stellar wine, the personal project of Anne Moller-Racke, who long ran Donum Estate. It is intensely full in feel and youthfully tannic, offering a wall of defined structure. This will do well over time, so enjoy from 2025–2030.
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Wine Spectator
Offers seductively ripe and juicy aromas, with well-knit flavors of macerated cherry and plum. Unctuous viscosity shows midpalate, leading to a finish that is flush with Asian spice and chocolate hints. Drink now through 2025.
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Tasting Panel
Medium crimson color with a nose of cherry and toast. Lush, deep, and savory, with intense notes of cherry and a silky texture. A classic from the edge of Carneros with a name I love.
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Connoisseurs' Guide
On first nosing a bit brighter and more forthrightly fruity than the rest of its Blue Farm sidekicks but without quite the same degree of complexity, this mediumfull-bodied Pinot keys principally on black cherries with a scant brushy trim that we often spot in those sourced from Carneros. Its main message, nonetheless, is ongoing, well-stated fruit, and, if another year or two of age will be useful in smoothing off its lightly tannic edges, it is not a wine to tag for long-haul keeping and looks to reach its best fairly soon.
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.