Blue Farm King Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir 2016
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King Ridge vineyard is tucked away on the northwestern reach of the Sonoma Coast. The AVA is Fort Ross-Seaview. At 1100 feet elevation and 5 miles inland from the Pacific Ocean, King Ridge Vineyard is worth a journey. We are excited to be working with 2 acres of this spectacular vineyard. Tightly spaced vines on Goldridge soil, superbly farmed, create wines that have tension and richness, balance and edginess.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
A baked bread tone leads to a bouquet of densely packed strawberry and blueberry in this wine. The palate is driven by a tangy citrus flavor and accentuated by a lingering layer of Asian spice on the finish.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Similarly ruby-colored, the 2016 Pinot Noir King Ridge Vineyard comes from the Fort Ross-Seaview AVA located far out on the Sonoma Coast and was brought up in 75% new French oak barrels for 15 months. Ripe cherries, raspberries, dried flowers, and some salty minerality and earthy notes all emerge from this nicely textured, elegant wine that has terrific balance, integrated acidity, and a great finish. It shows some more classic marine and salty sea breeze notes with time in the glass, has beautiful depth of fruit, and a pleasure bent, already accessible style.
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James Suckling
Stunning, ripe and expressive red-cherry aromas as well as rosehips, leading to a really powerful and concentrated, cherry-driven palate that has ample, sweet, fleshy fruit and long, expressive tannins. Drink now.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale to medium ruby-purple, the 2016 Pinot Noir King Ridge Vineyard opens with a soft perfume of Earl Grey tea leaves, moss-covered bark, undergrowth, dried flowers and potpourri with earth, cola, red and black cherries and red berries. Medium-bodied and intense, it walks a great line between ripe fruit and earthy nuances, framed by grainy tannins and juicy freshness, finishing long and layered.
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Wine Spectator
Firm, powerful and minerally tasting, with notes of hot stone to the pomegranate and wild cherry flavors. Hints of dried mint show on the finish. Drink now through 2021. 257 cases made.
Other Vintages
2014-
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In 2007, Anne helped her friend Timothy Mott with the planting and farming of his small vineyard of Pinot Noir, 1861, perched on a rocky hillside overlooking the town of Sonoma. A co-founder of Electronic Arts and executive of numerous start-ups, Tim and Anne then partnered in the expansion of Blue Farm.
Critically acclaimed winemaker Kenneth Juhasz has helped make Blue Farm’s small lot, single vineyard wines since 2003. Blue Farm focuses on Burgundian Grand Cru style Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines, drawing on Anne’s distinctive enological experience.
In 1981, Anne arrived from Germany to Sonoma, where she worked with legendary winemaker André Tchelistchef. For over three decades, Anne has been farming some of California’s most celebrated vineyards. In addition to her personal Blue Farm project, Anne is president and winegrower of 242 acres for The Donum Estate.
Living with the vineyard is the primary purpose of Anne’s craft. Her intuitive growing style develops wines of poise and power. Today, five Blue Farm vineyards reach from Sonoma’s Valley to its Coast and to the Russian River. Blue Farm wines reveal exceptional discoveries from lands graced with natural gifts.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
On the far western edge of the larger Sonoma Coast appellation, the Fort Ross-Seaview AVA hugs right up against the Pacific coast. Vineyards, planted at rugged elevations between 920 to 1,800 feet, occupy only two percent of the total land in the AVA. Fort Ross-Seaview growers believe that the region boasts an ideal mix of sunshine, cool air and beneficial stress for producing high quality Chardonnay and Pinot noir.