Winemaker Notes
Rich Bing cherry aromas combine with a touch of anise much like the famed West Block. A powerful wine with ripe fruit flavors, soft tannin and balance acidity.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale ruby-purple, the 2019 Pinot Noir River Block has layered aromas of raspberries and blueberries, bergamot and dusty earth with top notes of flowers and citrus peel. Medium-bodied, the palate is silky and fresh with expansive layers of spice, sweet berry fruit and earthy accents that last a very long time in the mouth. Its generous fruit intensity and juicy freshness make it appealing straight from the bottle, though it should have a long life in the cellar.
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Jeb Dunnuck
A darker, more exotic, mineral-laced effort, the 2019 Pinot Noir River Block offers up a big nose of red and blue fruits, sappy underbrush, candied orange, and violets. Textured, medium to full-bodied, juicy, and both rich and elegant.
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.