Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine & Spirits
Tom Rochioli is the third generation of this family to grow grapes on their farm, the vineyards rising up the west bank of the Russian River. He started bottling his own wine in 1985, and later developed a focus on single-parcel pinot noir. His estate blend is a fragrant, red-fruited pinot in 2016, a clean, gracious wine that seems to greet you with open arms. Oak plays a supporting role to the fruit that drives through the wine, lasting with fresh, floral, wild-berry flavors. Delicious.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Medium ruby-purple colored, the 2016 Pinot Noir Estate reveals lovely red currants, cinnamon stick, dried Provence herbs and fragrant earth notes over a core of crushed black cherries and raspberry tart. Medium to full-bodied, the juicy fruited palate offers a soft, satiny texture with great freshness, finishing with herb and earth sparks.
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.