Winemaker Notes
On this vintage, aromas of ripe black cherries and clove are complemented by flavors of dark berries and notes of forest floor. Silky, elegant tannins work in tandem with the layered flavors and hints of smoke as a subtle acidity provides a beautiful lift to complete the wine.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Very suave, with an unctuous blend of red fruit, spice and creamy flavors, supported by silky tannins. Raspberry and red currant notes are in the driver's seat, driven by sandalwood and hot spice nuances. The fresh finish is loaded with minerally richness.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale to medium ruby-purple, the 2017 Mardikian Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir opens to scents of tar, crushed cranberries, black and red cherries, tree bark and mushroom with hints of citrus peel and amaro. It's medium-bodied, silky and slowly unfurls in the mouth to earth-laced fruits, with a fine, grainy frame and great juicy freshness on the very long finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
Tightly focused tannin and oak form a formidable structure around well-defined flavors of black cherry, currant and forest in this full-bodied, densely concentrated wine. Thick, rich and complex, it packs a punch of intensity and memorable length and breadth.
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.