2008 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir
Winemaker's Notes
Primarily from our Drake Estate Vineyard (Pommard & Clone 115) planted in 1998, with a bit from vineyards along Westside Road. The nose is redolent of blackberries, plums, toffee, and crème brûlée. The rich and full tannins accentuate blackberry and dark plummy fruit flavors, and complement the creamy, silky finish. The concentrated dark fruits and spicy flavors truly express the classic depth, complexity, and finesse that you would expect from our Russian River Valley pinot noir.
—Winemaker Bob Cabral
The Vineyards
The pinot noir for this blend was sourced from our Drake Estate Vineyard, the Allen Vineyard, the Flax Vineyard, the Rochioli Riverblock Vineyard, the Bucher Vineyard, and our Litton Estate Vineyard.
Harvest 2008
2008 provided very concentrated, flavorful and high quality wines that are vividly expressive of the vineyards in which they were grown, despite being a difficult year for growing. The combination of numerous springtime frosts and cold rains damaged our buds and clusters, thus resulting in a lighter than average year. During the summer, the vines encountered near-perfect fruit ripening weather characterized by warm and sunny days with exceptionally few heat spikes. Very warm August temperatures quickened ripening beginning a very early, fast and furious harvest. The decreased yields resulted in very concentrated and extremely high quality wines, with brilliant flavor and phenolic ripening. The wines of 2008 express their distinctive sites and qualities in a very intense and focused manner: this is truly a vintage for the cellars, with great ageing potential for years to come.
Technical Notes
| Barrel Description: | 40% new, 30% 1-year-old, 30% 2-year-old |
|---|---|
| Barrel Aged: | 11 months |
| pH: | 3.50 |
| TA: | 0.66g/100ml |
| Alc.: | 14.0% |
| Release Date: | Spring 2010 |
| Release Price: | $46 |