Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
A selection from the Bearwallow Vineyard, the 2016 Pinot Noir Porcupine Hill is brilliant stuff and a solid step up over the straight vineyard release. More cassis, crushed flowers, violets, and pine notes all flow to a medium-bodied, silky effort that has building tannins. Vibrant, incredibly pure, and with a terrific finish, it’s a great bottle of wine that will keep for 10-15 years.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Derived from a section of the vineyard where the vines are planted at such high density that the stakes resembled the quills of a porcupine, the 2016 Pinot Noir Porcupine Hill Bearwallow Vineyard is very attractive, revealing a more brooding and sapid bouquet than the regular Bearwallow bottling. Offering up aromas of plums, wild berries, dark chocolate and incipient coniferous floor, the wine is medium to full-bodied, layered and multidimensional, with more concentration and amplitude than the regular Bearwallow, underpinned by bright acids and concluding with a stony, precise finish.
Anderson Valley, located in Mendocino County just above Sonoma County, is one of California’s coolest AVAs, allowing it a long growing season. Only 15 miles long, the region makes a slice eastward through the mountains, from the frigid Pacific Ocean. Dramatic diurnal temperature variations here preserve grape acidity and thus freshness in the finished wines. These are prime conditions for growing Pinot Noir, and the valley produces many fine versions. Characteristics of Anderson Valley Pinot Noir typically include crisp acidity, cranberry and strawberry notes as well as earthy notes of forest floor and mushroom.
Still Pinot Noir, however, is only part of the story. Pinot Noir, along with Chardonnay, are also grown for Anderson Valley’s exceptional sparkling wines. Produced via the traditional method, these offer a classic toasty note from lees aging, bright, complex fruit notes and a clean, refreshing character.