Winemaker Notes
Crushed Bing cherries, fresh wild strawberries, bright red fruits, clove and spice on the nose. The palate has notes of fresh Bing cherry, red fruits, white pepper and holiday spices. Overall, this wine is bright, lively, fresh and balanced.
Professional Ratings
-
Tasting Panel
Medium ruby color; rich, ripe, and dense with bright, fresh acidity, lush notes of black cherry, and lovely balance; long and expressive.
-
Wine Spectator
The dark fruit and spice flavors show good cut, supported by firm acidity and medium-grained tannins. Open-textured midpalate, featuring a finish that lingers with chocolate details and hints of cream. Drink now through 2023.
-
Wine Enthusiast
Intensely earthy, spicy and densely packed in black fruit, this wine is full bodied, fleshy and lengthy, with a generous helping of oak. The powerful nature of it appeals on the palate, with plenty of complexity.
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.