Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a standout wine, earthy in juicy red fruit, spicy clove and citrus peel. It is well integrated and robustly built, with a backbone of acidity that provides lasting structure and a finishing touch of elegance.
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James Suckling
Very bright ripe strawberry aromas with flowers. So much juicy fruit. Full body, layered tannins and a soft yet fresh finish. Thanks to the bright acidity, it maintains its focus and integrity. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Having seen 19% whole cluster, the 2015 Pinot Noir Freestone Vineyard has a medium ruby-purple color and nose of red cherries and black raspberries with hints of wild thyme, forest floor, lavender and moss. Medium-bodied, the palate is elegant and finely grained, with intense earth and red berry flavors, as well as a long finish.
Joseph Phelps Vineyards is a family-owned winery committed to crafting world class, estate-grown wines. Founded in 1973 when Joe Phelps purchased a former cattle ranch near St. Helena in the Napa Valley, the winery now controls and farms nearly 375 acres of vines on eight estate vineyards in St. Helena, the Stags Leap District, Oakville, Rutherford, Oak Knoll District, Carneros and South Napa Valley. In 1999, the Phelps family added 100 acres of vineyard property near the town of Freestone on the Sonoma Coast, where Phelps now grows Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
Phelps is best known for its flagship Napa Valley blend of red Bordeaux varietals, Insignia, first produced in 1974. Awarded Wine Spectator's "Wine of the Year" in 2005, Insignia is widely regarded as a qualitative benchmark for California winemaking.
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.