Winemaker Notes
Since the winery’s inception in 1991, they have crafted a vineyard designate wine to capture the depth and elegance offered by this esteemed site. The deep ruby color and bright notes of rose tea, spiced cherry, and earth aromas has all the hallmarks of a classic vintage from this vineyard. Fine-grained tannins provide a silky mouthfeel, while flavors of boysenberry, cocoa, and dried herbs add complexity to the refreshing acidity that supports the finish that is clean and long.
Brilliant with hickory smoked duck breast with shiso, nori and persimmon.
Professional Ratings
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale to medium ruby-purple colored, the 2017 Pinot Noir Hyde Vineyard sings of ripe cranberries, kirsch and black raspberries with hints of rhubarb, underbrush, spice cake and fragrant soil. Medium to full-bodied, it has a wonderfully soft texture and tons of bold red berry layers, extending to a long, compelling finish with a touch of minerality.
-
James Suckling
Lots of blue fruit, such as blueberries and lemon rind. Full yet compact and long with beautiful purity of fruit. Extremely long and flavorful. Racy and bright with length and excitement.
-
Connoisseurs' Guide
A bit more demonstrative of its maker’s signature richness than is its youthfully reticent companion from the Katherine Lindsay Estate, this full-throated Pinot Noir is long on incisive, nicely concentrated black cherry and raspberry fruit, and it takes on extra dimension from its lovely appointment of beautifully measured, creamy oak. Its present suppleness presages Pinot’s singularly velvety texture but one must summon sufficient self-control to wait for the four or five years required before this superb offering fully comes into its own.
As early as the 1970s Carneros became known as a source of terrific Pinot Noir, and was one of the first California regions to gain such a reputation. The combination of sunny days, cooling fog and thin clay soils are tailor-made for the variety. Another factor in Pinot Noir’s prominent place here is vintners’ willingness to experiment widely. The history of the grape in Carneros is marked by continuous research into clonal variations, viticultural techniques and site selection. Careful evaluation over time has revealed a signature flavor profile as well. Complex aromas and flavors of cherry, red berry, spice, earth and cola appear time and again in Carneros Pinot Noir. To this day the appellation remains one of California’s standard bearers for the variety.