Winemaker Notes
The wine offers the graceful texture of moderate climate Pinot Noir with the chiseled features derived from the windy Petaluma Gap, and a little Russian River spice thrown in for good measure. The 2016 vintage, while notably their ripest vintage produced, remains true to the sweet-savory essence of Pinot Noir. A surprisingly dark ruby hue and soaring aromas of red plum, rosehip, and orange zest, is followed by a flavor filled with spiced red berries and berries and a pleasing layer of density and complexity, leading up to a satisfying finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine & Spirits
Martin Reyes, MW, blended this wine, focused on fruit from the Terra de Promissio Vineyard in the Petaluma Gap. Then he showed it to Jamey Whetstone over burgers at Gott’s; their informal collaboration over this wine led to Whetstone joining the Peter Paul team in 2018. Part of the wine is tart and zingy, another part sunny and warm. The fruit is black and blue, lasting on salty spice. Serve it with an equally spicy cioppino, San Francisco’s tomato-based fish stew.
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Wine Spectator
Lively and fruit-filled, with concentrated red plum and raspberry flavors that feature some licorice notes. Dark chocolate and spice details show on the finish.
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.