Winemaker Notes
Clearly the darkest of the three wines, the 2018 Annapolis Ridge Vineyard shows a dark garnet core with a neon cardinal rim. Aromatically, the wine offers notes of clove, cola and sweet black cherry. On the palate, prominent acidity takes over and assists by throwing wild blueberry, olallieberry and freshly picked tarragon across the tongue. The finish is framed by an intriguing texture of soft velvet
and dust paired with crisp acidity indicative of its aging potential.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Medium ruby-purple in color, the 2018 Pinot Noir Annapolis Vineyard comes skipping out of the glass with dramatic notes of candied violets, black raspberries, kirsch and dark chocolate with nuances of lavender, underbrush and truffles. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has a rock-solid frame of ripe, plush tannins and lively acidity supporting the perfumed red berry layers, finishing long with loads of spices coming through.
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Wine Spectator
This powerfully fruity red is filled with unctuous spiciness to the intense blackberry tart and dried blueberry flavors, showing hints of black licorice. Ends with chocolate croissant accents on the finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
Reductive, leathery and dense in ripe red fruit, this bold wine is made in a big style from a cool, coastal site. Forest floor and black tea contrast well against its richer tendencies, finishing in fresh, citrusy undertones.
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.