Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This is the most attractive and successful of the winery's three releases of 2007 Pinot Noir. It’s dry and crisp in acidity and very rich, with oak-inspired waves of cherries, cola, mushu plum sauce and smoky sandalwood. Drink this elegant wine in the next year or two.
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Wine Spectator
Floral, anise and crushed berry aromas are intense, supple and balanced, built around raspberry, wild berry and hints of strawberry. Ends with an elegant minerally edge. Drink now through 2013. 5,500 cases made.
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.