Winemaker Notes
Located on a coastal ridge just five miles from the Pacific Ocean, the remote site yields a bright, vibrant ruby wine with fragrant aromas of red tart cherry, strawberry, and floral. Expressive on the palate, this vintage exudes red tea, spice, red clay, and sea salt, and exhibits creamy yet good tension framed by fine-grained tannins and an elegant finish.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Peaches, fresh flowers, rose petal, cedar and orange blossom. Medium to full body with a brightness and complexity. So lively and complex with energy and intensity. Cedar, dried seaweed and strawberry aftertaste. Gorgeous now.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2020 Pinot Noir Goldrock Estate, matured in 30% new oak, is a touch muted on the nose and takes time to reveal red cherries, raspberries, blood orange and potpourri. The medium-bodied palate is soft and juicy with a concentrated core of red berry fruit and pleasant herbal undertones on the long finish. Drink it over the next 3-5 years.
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Wine Spectator
A juicy, balled-up wine, brimming with blackberry and boysenberry compote flavors lined with black tea, anise and chaparral. Give this a touch of cellaring to let everything unwind fully. Lots to like here. Best from 2023 through 2029.
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.