Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Moving to the reds, the 2014 Pinot Noir Durell Vineyard comes mostly from clay and loam soils and spent 15 months in 36% new French oak. Notes of black cherries, strawberries, toasted bread and wild herbs flow to a seamless, silky, polished Pinot Noir that has fine tannin and a perfectly balanced, charming style.
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Wine Enthusiast
Winemaker Gavin Chanin's co-effort with Durell owner Bill Price aims to show vibrancy and freshness of fruit and succeeds on both counts in this light-bodied, complex wine. Clove, rich, dark cherry and bright acidity combine for a fresh take on a typically voluptuous vineyard, finding the layers of rocky minerality that lie beneath.
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.