Iron Horse Estate Pinot Noir 1997

Our current rising star wine. Iron Horse was honored to be one of only 60 wineries invited to the 1998 International Pinot Noir Celebration in McMinnville, Oregon. Our particular growing region in cool-climate Green Valley--a special appellation within the Russian River appellation--is at the heart of prime Sonoma County Pinot Noir country. A cutting-edge winemaking technique--cold soaking the fruit and barrel fermentation--brings out an earthy, mushroomy dimension. 1997 was a superb vintage-our very favorite since 1980, and unusually bountiful. Food pairing: Pinot Noir's chief virtue as a food wine is its versatility. It can go with a steak as well as salmon, sea bass, roast chicken, lamb, a "meaty" Portobello mushroom burger, grilled quail, or roasted duck. There's a smoky flavor inherent in the grape that goes with smoked meats. It's delicious with beet salad, grilled leeks, onion pizza, old fashioned baked onion soup or onion confit. It works quite well with many Provencal dishes--brandade, olive tapenade, roasted garlic on crusty French bread, soupe au pistou, stuffed squash blossoms, summer squash and ratatouille. Even grilled zucchini.