Winemaker Notes
This one-time moonshine producing site, deep in the Sonoma Coast hills, was planted by Charlie Chenoweth to a large array of high quality Pinot Noir selections, which adds complexity and depth. Energetic, fruity top notes swirl around aromas of raspberry tea, clove, carnation blossom and sassafras. Extraordinarily concentrated and rich, this wine is at once chewy and thick while maintaining an energy and freshness that speaks to the coolness and long ripening of Bootlegger’s Hill.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale to medium ruby-purple in color, the 2016 Pinot Noir Bootlegger's Hill opens with notes of black cherries, warm plums and wild blueberries with touches of Indian spices, fertile loam and fungi. Medium-bodied, it offers black berries and earth notions in the mouth, with a firm, fine-grained frame and long, earthy finish.
Rating: 93+ -
Wine Spectator
Lithe, pure-tasting and focused, with accents of dried tarragon to the crisp cherry and raspberry flavors. Spiced melon and pastry notes linger on the finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
This lovely, memorable wine has a candied element that's inviting and exotic—a strong element of orange peel that refreshes the palate. Cranberry, forest floor and black tea accent a core of salty, meaty and savory character that's irresistible and balanced.
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.