Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesThe 2017 Pinot Noir Cuvee Number One comes all from the Pommard and 115 clones in the Lakeview Vineyard and sees a tiny amount of stems followed by 11 months in 50% new oak. Beautiful blue fruits, wild strawberries, scorched earth, and charcoal notes flow to a medium-bodied, vibrant Pinot Noir that stays fresh and focused on the palate. With good acidity and ripe tannins, it will keep for over a decade.
Very dark and full aromas of deep-red-cherry fruit combine with loamy soil, crushed slate and scarlet rose petals on the intense nose of this bottling. A grippy structure frames the elegant yet strong sip, where flavors of dark pomegranate and cherry are spiced by cocoa dust.
Cattleya made quite a splash with its pair of first-rate Sauvignon Blancs in last-month’s issue of CGCW, and it comes up aces once again with this lithe and lively, very well-crafted Pinot. Both fully ripe and impeccably balanced, it manages to be rich, substantially fruity and light on its feet all at once with an unwavering focus on deep, fully ripe, varietal cherries and is enriched by the judicious appointment of creamy oak. For all of its considerable immediate charm, it is a wine that will only get better with age, and we see it improving for another three to five years and anticipate that it will provide lovely drinking for at least twice as long.
In her words: Since my early teenage years, my dream has been to make wine.
At a very young age I was fortunate enough to begin learning how to make wine in France. I trained myself while working with some amazing winemakers who showed me the importance of loving the land, how to respect the farming itself, and to focus on the many details that go into making each drop of wine in each and every bottle.
While studying in Bordeaux and Cognac I learned the required viticulture, enology and microbiology (“wine science”); but most importantly, I was also exposed to the many rituals involved in winemaking–things like pruning, harvesting and bottling–that feel so special and meaningful each season. I told myself that one day a bottle of wine would be infused with the longings of my soul through fruit produced from a specific terroir that spoke to my heart. That place I have found.
Situated on the foggier and colder western edge of the Russian River Valley, almost abutting the Sonoma Coast appellation, Green Valley is one of California’s most reputable Chardonnay and Pinot noir producing regions. It is also a wonderful source of sparkling wines made from these varieties.
Goldridge soils abound throughout the Green Valley appellation. This fine, dark, sandy loam and fractured sandstone is derived from the remains of ancient inland seabeds dating back three to five million years. It is valuable for high quality grape growing because of its excellent drainage and low fertility.
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.”