Winemaker Notes
This one-time moonshiner site, deep in the Sonoma Coast hills was planted by Charlie Chenoweth to a large array of high-quality Pinot Noir selections, which add complexity and depth. The nose is filled with bright cherry, blueberry and dried orange peel notes along with a hint of pine and cedar. Textured and elegant, the layers of flavor keep revealing themselves as the wines sits in the glass.
Professional Ratings
-
Wine Enthusiast
Offering pillowy Goldridge soil-influenced tannins, this bold, full-flavored wine is seamless on the palate in velvety richness, offering dense layers of strawberry, citrus and tea. The brooding is met by bright, fresh acidity that keeps it balanced and complex.
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.