Winemaker Notes
The 2018 has all the spice and power that you expect from the estate along with a purity. There is both a lushness and a gamey-ness that you don’t see in the other wines.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2018 Pinot Noir Diane Cobb Coastlands Vineyard comes from vines planted in 1989. Various clones are planted on AXR1 rootstock, including Wadenswil, Pommard and Martini. Despite the rootstock, Ross Cobb notes that the vines are unaffected by phylloxera. "We are very isolated out here, and those old clones are doing fine." Pale ruby, the 2018 offers both power and delicacy. The nose takes time to evolve from tobacco leaves and dusty earth to wild blackberries and cranberries, citrus peel, rose petal and saline. The palate surprises with its fruit intensity and notably silty, seamless frame, finishing uplifted and very spicy.
The Sonoma Coast AVA is large in area but, not counting overlapping regions like Russian River Valley, only has a few thousand acres of grapevines—and it’s no wonder. Much of the region is rugged and not easily accessible. Its proximity to the Pacific Ocean’s fog and cool breezes limits the varieties that can be cultivated, but it proves to be an ideal environment for high quality Pinot Noir.
Since fog is a frequent fact of life here, as are heavy marine layers that sometimes bring rain, the best vineyards are wisely planted above the fog line, on picturesque ridges that capture enough sun to provide even ripening. That, with the overnight drop in temperature that reliably preserves acidity, results in fine expressions of Pinot Noir that often receive tremendous critic and consumer praise alike, and are often in high demand.