Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2020 Pinot Noir Reserve pours a rich ruby with a bit of youthful purple and has aromas of black raspberry, wild herbs, menthol, and fresh soil. Medium to full-bodied, with an angular structure, it has driving energy with wonderful balance, revealing notes of fresh red cherry, herbes de Provence, and saline. An outstanding wine from this challenged vintage.
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James Suckling
So much hibiscus and purple fruit, together with dried citrus and minerals. It’s full, yet vivid and energetic, with fantastic length and intensity. Amazing linear strength and energy. This is from the best barrels of their production. A triumph for the vintage. D
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.