Pinot and Mead- Russian River to Anderson Valley (Day 3 of April 2013)

April 2013 wasn't all Napa Valley and Cabernet Sauvignon. My traveling wine-tasting committee spent the next day working our way up from the Russian River Valley and Healdsburg, to Anderson Valley and Boonville. 

sidewalk bbq chicken tacos in Healdsburg- photo by Jon

Highlights included a stop at Holdredge Winery in Healdsburg to taste their wines and to meet with Ed Thralls of Thralls Wine. We met Ed the prior evening to try his initial bottled releases – a 2011 Thralls Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, and a 2008 Thralls Alder Springs Syrah from Mendocino. Ed, who was a wine blogger in Atlanta, made the Syrah at Crushpad in San Francisco while still living back east. After moving to the west coast in 2010 he further honed his winemaking skills in the cellar at Holdredge, producing his first Pinot Noir. 

The 2008 Alder Springs Syrah I thought was excellent – showing bright blackcurrant fruit along with integrated notes of violet, white pepper, and beef-marinade; with firmly structured tannins and bright acidity. The 2011 Pinot Noir comes from the Prodigy Vineyard near Occidental. It showed lots of funky green earth notes with plenty of tart bright cranberry & cherry fruit, polished mid-palate weight and fine tannins, along with a juicy finish – a solid first Pinot Noir effort.

Ed doling out the samples- photo by Justin

What really impressed me though were Ed’s 2012’s in barrel. Four single vineyard wines (Saralee’s and Bucher from Russian River, Roma’s from Anderson Valley, and Occidental from Sonoma Coast), and a Sonoma Coast blend – all were exhibiting nice bright fruit and rich depth. My early favorite was the Thralls 2012 Roma’s Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley- which showed nice earth, floral and fig notes over a nice vibrant and polished frame.

Holdredge Winery specializes in Pinot Noir from the Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast. The lineup was mostly 2011 vintage – a cool year that brought out little extras in the cellar – saignee, pigeage, and longer cold-soaks. This added an apparent depth and richness to the mid-palate that I appreciated throughout the lineup. These wines showed a bright elegance that made way for a rich hedonistic side, exhibiting balance throughout. My favorite was the 2011 Holdredge Selection Massale Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley- a blend of 9 different clones, showing savory spice, violet, dark fruit and earth throughout with a richly layered palate of polish and brightness.

photo by Ed Thralls

Pinot Noir wasn’t the only thing flowing at Holdredge. We tasted Monks Mead, a brand that Justin produces back in Atlanta. Mead is wine fermented from honey. Monks is inoculated with a Champagne yeast and fermented to drink like a beer, resulting in a carbonated beverage with bright and slightly sweet notes, finishing crisp and clean, and with a lethal 12.9% ABV. Justin and his fellow mead-maker Martin sell Monks on draught and in growlers back in Atlanta.

The road to Anderson Valley from Cloverdale takes you through green forests and over pastoral foothills before landing in the narrow valley that’s home to the many up and coming Pinot Noir vineyards and producers. The Drew tasting room in Philo was a good introduction to the valley with a nice lineup of wines, and an interesting host named Susan Robinson. Susan’s a writer and exile from LA who writes a blog that educates and enlightens on the subject of GMO’s in food. She also makes some killer bread.

Jon & Justin with Joe from Foursight

Anderson Valley was highlighted by an epic tasting with winemaker Joe Webb of Foursight Wines in Boonville. Foursight produces Pinot Noir, Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon from their estate Charles Vineyard. Joe makes his Pinot Noir with native yeast fermentations, using partial whole-clusters, and bottles unfined and unfiltered. Aging takes place in new and used French oak barrels from the Allier, Troncais, and Bertranges forests.

I thought this was a stellar lineup of wines. The 2011 Foursight Charles Vineyard Semillon, impressed with bright tropical fruit and savory white pepper and earth tones, along with a richly polished structure. But this was all about Pinot Noir. We tasted wines split between the cool weather 2009 and 2010 vintages. The 2009’s showed massively bright high-tones that brought an expanded fruit profile – think red apple and tropical on top of fig and cherry mineral notes. I loved both the 2009 Foursight Charles Vineyard Zero New Oak Pinot Noir and the 2009 Foursight Charles Vineyard Pinot Noir. The former showed gleaming bright fruit along with slate and earthy spice, on top of an elegant structure. The latter added more floral & mineral depth and richness to the bright high tones. In contrast the 2010’s were more about darker cherry and fig notes and earthy spice. The 2010 Foursight Charles Vineyard Zero New Oak Pinot Noir showed both sweet and savory spice notes, along with tea leaf and sagebrush on top of fig and cherry fruit, with richly layered structure. The 2010 Foursight Charles Vineyard Pommard Clone 5 Pinot Noir was massively layered with pine & eucalyptus earthiness, tea, fig and sandalwood – good acidity and long fine tannins. Quality to price – these estate single vineyard Pinot Noir bottlings are screaming values.

The drive back to Sonoma County passed through the Mendocino Ridge AVA and down the coast. Click here for a full list of tasting notes from this epic day of coastal wines from Sonoma and Mendocino Counties. 

Day 2- A Sunday in Northern Sonoma

Day 2 of my Napa/Sonoma weekend junket saw me in Northern Sonoma tasting a variety of wines from a variety of appellations. 

Sunday ended up as a trip from Siduri's Santa Rosa winery, throughout the Middle Reach area of the Russian River Valley at Copain and Porter Creek, and up to Ridge-Lytton Springs in the Dry Creek Valley. Aside from plenty of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, it was a great day to taste varietals ranging from Viognier & Pinot Noir Blanc to Zinfandel, Syrah & Carignane.

Siduri is located in an industrial complex in Santa Rosa- a large open warehouse space filled with fermentation tanks, barrels and cases- with a tasting area carved out within and plenty of variety to be had. Their Novy Family wines featured Chardonnay, a white Pinot Noir, Nebbiolo, Syrah, Zinfandel and a late-harvest Viognier- most of which were single vineyard. Overall the Novy wines were distinctive and terroir-driven with good value. Among the Siduri Pinot Noirs were four new 2010 releases including three single vineyards- 2010 Chehalem Mountains Willamette Valley, 2010 Sonatera Sonoma Coast, 2010 Ewald Russian River Valley & 2010 Cargasacchi Sta. Rita Hills. The Sonatera and Cargasacchi were highlights for me.

Copain was a magical and lustrous spot perched up on a hill along Eastside Road. The winery and tasting room overlooks their estate vineyard on one side, and the greater expanse of valley floor vineyards on the other. It's a nice showcase for the wines, which were pure and focused with deft balance and elegance. Tasted were current release "Tous Ensemble" and "Les Voisins" wines from Anderson Valley (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah) as well as a single vineyard Pinot Noir- 2009 "En Bas" Kiser from Anderson Valley. Overall a beautiful assortment of wines. 

The Ridge tasting room at Lytton Springs is a great place to view 100+ year old Zinfandel vines as well as taste a full assortment from of Ridge wines- from the Monte Bello wines in the Santa Cruz Mountains to the Zinfandel and blends from Sonoma. Lastly, Porter Creek has a cool little tasting room along Westside Road overlooking their organic vineyards on one side and a MacMurray Ranch vineyard on the other. Their wines overall show bright fruit with balanced Russian River spice and earth along with a hint of rusticity.

Below are my favorite wines from the day (click the link for price and tech info as available).

Siduri 2010 Pinot Noir Sonatera, Sonoma Coast-

Compact aromas of spice, sagebrush, sandalwood and fig. Interesting red notes on the palate- spice, dates, fig and sarsaparilla. Nicely weighted and smooth fine tannins. Full breathy finish. Very nice.

Siduri 2010 Pinot Noir Cargasacchi, Sta. Rita Hills- 

Dense all the way through. Aromas of sage, plum, mossy earth and violet. The palate featured densely layered red and dark fruit, eucalyptus, earth and mushroom. Smooth and lithe through the palate with fine tannins and a lengthy breathy finish. Very nice, needs a little time.

Novy Family 2009 Syrah Rosella's Vineyard, Santa Lucia Highlands-

Aromas of tea leaf, olive, black pepper, violet & bacon fat- with blue fruit and cassis on the palate accented violet and white pepper. Fine grainy tannins and full breathy finish. Very nice.

Novy Family 2010 Viognier Oley Late Harvest, Russian River Valley-

Aromas of slate, honey and apricot- shown with focused baking spice and gingerbread depth on the palate. Nicely balanced and intense. Full finish.

Copain 2010 Chardonnay "Tous Ensemble", Anderson Valley-

Bright aromas- Meyer lemon, riverstone and spice. Similar notes on the palate, very bright fruit with mineral accents and toasty lees. Rich and silky and bright throughout with a full finish. Very nice.

Copain 2009 Pinot Noir "LesVoisins", Anderson Valley-

Bouquet of clove, eastern spice, fig & sandalwood. Bright raspberry & fig with earthy spice depth on the palate. Elegant textures, fine tannins and a full plush finish. Very nice.

Copain 2009 Pinot Noir "En Bas" Kiser, Anderson Valley- 

Complex and dense bouquet- bright raspberry & fig paste with a myriad of spice and floral aromas. Beautifully layered and textured fruit with earth, spice and wood depth- woven and seamless and still tightly wound but very pretty. Fine smooth fleshy tannin with lingering depth on finish. Needs a few years. Outstanding.

Copain 2009 Syrah "Les Voisins", Yorkville Highlands- 

Plump aromas of black pepper, black olive, marinating beef, violet and plum. Pure fruit and savory depth on the palate- seamlessly woven with fleshy feel and fine firm tannins and full finish. Deft balance. Excellent.

Ridge 2010 Geyserville, Alexander Valley- 

Tasted at Lytton Springs. Aromas of black pepper, blue fruit and wild earth. Juicy and ripe fruit on the palate with savory like leather and spice. Roundly structured and an ample finish. Very good.

Ridge 2007 Syrah Lytton Estate, Dry Creek Valley-

Expressive aromas of anise, savory spice, blueberry and lavender. Peppery dark and red fruit on the palate with accents of blue flowers, licorice and cola. Round smooth tannins and a breathy juicy finish. Very nice.

Ridge 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate, Santa Cruz Mountains- 

Notes of cedar, tobacco, cassis, berry and leather. Layered and complex and elegant. Juicy with nice depth and feel. Fine firm tannins and a medium finish. Very nice.

Ridge 2007 Monte Bello, Santa Cruz Mountains-

Big savory notes on the bouquet- tobacco leaf, earth, shoebox leather; rich and deep with cassis and currant peeking through. Rich and fine on the palate with layered fruit and depth- still very dense and tightly wound. Fine tannins and lengthy finish.

Porter Creek 2010 Old Vine Chardonnay, Russian River Valley- 

Notes of slate, lemon and stone fruit. Rich and balanced on the palate with stone fruit, spice and traces of mineral notes. Medium finish with lingering spice.

Porter Creek 2009 Pinot Noir Fiona Hill, Russian River Valley- 

High pitched spice and plum on the bouquet. The palate led with plum and cherry along with mulled spice and rocky mineral notes that were balanced and integrated. Nicely layered structure with fine tannins and a pleasing finish.

Porter Creek 2009 Zinfandel Old Vine, Sonoma Co- 

Blue fruit on the nose with subtle mulled spice. Red cherry and red currant notes on the palate that are jammy and juicy, along with notes of earth and cracked pepper. Juicy fleshy tannins and a nice long finish. Very nice.

Porter Creek 2009 Syrah Timbervine Ranch, Russian River Valley-

Huge Syrah nose of green olive, bacon fat, cracked pepper and black currant. On the palate is grainy black fruit with savory herb and pepper notes. Nice depth. Coarse tannins with a nice richness on the palate. Breathy finish. Very nice.