Winemaker Notes
A brilliant rose color in the glass, this wine exudes juicy aromatics of baked strawberry, dragon fruit and cherry cola. A focused but generous entry on the palate leads way to tastes of cherry juice, ripe red plum and baking spice culminating in lively tannins and a persistent finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Youthfully shy and quiet at first, this wine evolves in the glass to offer an intoxicating mix of violet and rose petal on the nose. Flavors of red and dark fruit find a richly interwoven foundation of cola, pepper and nutmeg, with balanced acidity throughout.
While the Russian River Valley is a large appellation with multiple climate zones and soil types, it is best known for cool-climate varieties, with Pinot Noir as the most celebrated. The grapes benefit from a reliable late afternoon flow of Pacific Ocean fog through the Petaluma Gap and along the Russian River Valley that ensures slow and steady ripening and the preservation of grape acidity. Today many of California’s most highly regarded Pinot Noir vineyards are in the Russian River Valley, along with its sub-appellation, Green Valley.
Historically Russian River Valley Pinot Noirs had bright red fruit and delicate earthy, mineral notes. But changes in viticultural and winemaking practices have led to stylistic changes in some of the region’s wines. Adjustments to canopy management, among other techniques, have resulted in riper fruit and bolder wines as well. These show flavors of black cherry, blackberry, cola, spice and darker, loamy earth tones, accenting traditional Pinot Noir notes of strawberry, raspberry and light cherry.