Winemaker Notes
With layers of delicate red berry flavors and a touch of spice, this delicious Pinot Noir is a study in balance and nascent complexity. Red and blue fruits dominate the lushly textured flavors and are joined by sumptuous black tea and detailed pomegranate notes on the velvety finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This wine is opulent, with aromas of red currant, brandied cherry, maple and notes of dried potpourri on the nose. The flavors on the palate are cranberry-pomegranate, orange zest, pink grapefruit and vanilla cream, interlocked with dried sage, espresso crema and a juicy, dry finish.
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James Suckling
An attractive oak toast aroma leads to bright, ripe cherry flavors and more oak spices in this light- to medium-bodied and moderately tannic wine. It has good textural tension and nervy balance. Drink or hold.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Crisp, high-toned red fruit stars in the 2022 Pinot Noir Wiley Vineyard, where aromas and flavors of forest, dried herb, and rose highlight a mid-palate of grippy tannins that form around a firm structure and moderate length.
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Wine Spectator
Shows good underlying energy as the mix of mulberry and black cherry fruit drives along, flecked with rose hip, rooibos tea and iris accents along the way. There's a late minerally echo. Drink now through 2031. 270 cases made.
Created by winemaker Derek Rohlffs, Bravium is the culmination of meticulous care in the vineyards and a patient approach in the cellar. Derek takes his cues from tradition. He doesn’t alter what the earth gives him. He’s a classic minimalist.
But don’t mistake minimalism for apathy. Quietly guiding a wine in a thoughtful, deliberate way—without intervening at every twist and turn—requires diligent attention to detail and a generous amount of restraint. The wine in the glass is born of a deeply purposeful approach. It is a gift of the land, valued and honored.
Derek grows Chardonnay and Pinot Noir grapes in coveted cool-climate vineyards in Sonoma’s Russian River Valley and Mendocino’s Anderson Valley.
Derek’s minimalist approach translates the nuances of each coastal vineyard in the glass, illustrating a distinct, transparent sense of place in every sip. The result is a collection of compelling, terroir-driven wines that pair naturally with food and have rare aging potential, relative to their Chardonnay and Pinot Noir peers.
Anderson Valley, located in Mendocino County just above Sonoma County, is one of California’s coolest AVAs, allowing it a long growing season. Only 15 miles long, the region makes a slice eastward through the mountains, from the frigid Pacific Ocean. Dramatic diurnal temperature variations here preserve grape acidity and thus freshness in the finished wines. These are prime conditions for growing Pinot Noir, and the valley produces many fine versions. Characteristics of Anderson Valley Pinot Noir typically include crisp acidity, cranberry and strawberry notes as well as earthy notes of forest floor and mushroom.
Still Pinot Noir, however, is only part of the story. Pinot Noir, along with Chardonnay, are also grown for Anderson Valley’s exceptional sparkling wines. Produced via the traditional method, these offer a classic toasty note from lees aging, bright, complex fruit notes and a clean, refreshing character.