Winemaker Notes
The Estate wines are made to be fresh and drink earlier than the vineyard designate wines. The Estate parcel for Pinot Noir is at the northern most spot in the vineyard and is planted to the Rochioli clone.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Moving to the reds, the 2022 Pinot Noir The Estate Vineyard comes from a selection from the entire ranch focusing only on the Rochioli clone. It was entirely de-stemmed (as are all these Pinot Noirs) and saw 25% new French oak, with the rest in one-year-old François Frères barrels. In the glass, it pours a ruby color, and it’s ripe and charming, with classic notes of cola, baked cherries, clove, and toasted cedar. It offers good freshness on the palate and has a light gamey note, but it has good, ripe concentration of fruit that’s persistent through the finish, with a supple mouthfeel and a ripe sensibility.
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Vinous
The 2022 Pinot Noir The Estate Vineyards is bright, precise and wonderfully energetic. Crushed flowers, white pepper, red-toned fruit and a kick of orange peel acidity lend nuance. In 2022, the Estate is wonderfully translucent and refined.
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.