Winemaker Notes
The 2016 vintage of Rosemary's Vineyard Pinot Noir is brilliant ruby in hue. Plum and strawberry aromas on the nose are complemented by black tea and wet earth undertones. The palate is soft, characterized by fine tannins and notes of black cherry, rich plum, and wet cement.
Try pairing this Pinot Noir with wild mushroom risotto or grilled salmon.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Another gem is the 2016 Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard, which is up with the crème de la crème from California. This deeply colored effort gives up tons of cassis and ripe cherry fruits, subtle background oak and spice, medium body, and a layered, multi-dimensional texture. With sensational purity of fruit and top-notch balance, it will keep for 10-15 years.
Rating: 96+ -
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The pale to medium ruby colored 2016 Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard has sexy scents of woodsmoke, saline, pink peppercorn, rose petals, tangerine and loads of red berries—raspberries, strawberries, dried cranberry and pomegranate—with notions of fir, forest floor and bark. Medium-bodied and satiny, it slowly opens in the mouth to intense, nuanced flavor layers, finely grained and with addicting juiciness, finishing long and perfumed.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: Talley Vineyards continues to produce some of the finest Pinot Noirs from the Central Coast. The 2016 Rosemary's Vineyard is one of the winery's best wines to date. TASTING NOTES: This wine is energetic and vibrant. Its aromas and flavors of bright red fruits should pair it perfectly with a lightly garlic-infused roast leg of lamb. (Tasted: August 20, 2018, San Francisco, CA)
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James Suckling
Elderberries, red and black licorice and brambleberry pie. Very nicely done on the palate with a super balance between acidity tension, soft, dark fruit and firm tannins. Drink now.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
One of the coolest growing areas in California, the Arroyo Grande Valley runs from the southwest to the northeast, just a few miles from the Pacific Ocean and is part of the Central Coast AVA. Situated so that cold Pacific Ocean air and fog is allowed to filter into the valley, Arroyo Grande also has an incredibly long growing season. Bud break occurs in February in most years with flowering in May and harvest in late September; the area is classified as cool Mediterranean.
These weather factors combined with the soil types—continental and marine rocks, greywacke, limestone, shale and volcanic—create wines with great concentration and fresh acidity. The cooler end of the valley is perfect for Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and is a good producer of sparkling wines. The warmer, more inland part of the valley is home to some of California’s oldest Zinfandel vines.