Winemaker Notes
Westside Farms, a 75-acre ranch, has been in farmland since the mid-1800s and borders a mile and a half of the Russian River. This Pinot Noir strikes a fine balance between rich, jammy styles and leaner, coastal styles. It is at once both elegant and delicious.
As traditionally practiced in Burgundy, Ramey uses an anaerobic approach with their Pinot Noir to preserve freshness. It is aged sur lies with monthly bâtonnage and spent 20 months in 50% new French barrels (Taransaud & François Frères).
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
This remarkable wine is serious, structured and deep, alive with black cherry and sour cherry flavors framed by firm tannins and vivid acidity. Full-bodied. It’s tenser and more tannic than many Russian River pinots. Black tea, black currants, cloves and cedar on the mid-palate and finish. Drinkable now and best from 2030.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2023 Estate Pinot Noir Westside Farms has alluring aromas of pomegranate, dried red cherries, orange peel, tobacco and juniper. The full-bodied palate offers detailed, enveloping, perfumed flavors. It’s structured by velvety tannins and bright acidity and has a long, spicy finish. It will benefit from time in the cellar.
Rating: 93+ -
Wine Spectator
This is expressive, with notes of raspberry and mulberry preserves leading the charge, along with flecks of anise, blood orange zest and iris. Its juicy tumble of a finish should lengthen out with nuance after modest cellaring.
David Ramey is among a distinguished group of pioneering American vintners who revolutionized modern-day winemaking and elevated California to the forefront of the international wine community. Hailed as “Professor Chardonnay” by Wine Spectator, David's groundbreaking work with indigenous yeasts, sur lies aging and malolactic and barrel fermentation yielded a new California Chardonnay style that was richer, more lush and silky smooth. Ramey Wine Cellars crafts exceptional expressions of Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Pinot Noir from top vineyards in Sonoma and Napa.
After earning a graduate degree at UC Davis, with his thesis on how aromas evolve in wine, David Ramey pursued a hands-on education in Old World winemaking traditions. He worked at Chateau Pétrus and would later apply these time-honored methods to California’s premier vineyards. In California, David led winemaking for Matanzas Creek, Chalk Hill, Dominus Estate and Rudd Estate. In 1996, David and his wife Carla founded Ramey Wine Cellars with the vision of crafting classically styled, elegant and balanced wines that age beautifully.
Still exclusively owned by the Rameys, the next generation, Claire and Alan Ramey, became co-presidents of the winery in 2021. Claire and Alan began working at the winery in 2013 and have been cross-trained in all aspects of winery operations. Decanter greeted the news of Ramey’s status as a multigenerational winery by saying: "its reputation as a touchstone for world-class Chardonnay remains firmly in place… The Ramey family is expected to go from strength to strength." The vision is unwavering: to make classic wines from Sonoma and Napa that belong amongst the world's best. Tastings are offered by appointment in Healdsburg.
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.