Tasting Notes:
The
combination of low fruit yield, but a long, cool ripening period imparted both intensity
and balance to the vintage. This is a wine that benefited from all of its 17 months in
barrel, and will continue to do so with long aging in the bottle. In the glass it shows the
vivid Bing cherry, candied cranberry and mineral elements that we so love in this
vineyard. With further time in the glass, the overtones of Asian spices and an almost
peaty element lift the core of fruit. In the mouth, the voluptuous fruit is balanced by
bright acidity, and a solid structure for food pairing and aging potential. The tannins are
particularly fine and sweet, resulting from the long ripening season. This is a Pinot to pair
with a great filet, sharp (but not funky) cheeses, or a well made coq au vin.
Vineyard Notes:
When Mac McDougall purchased his stunning ranch spanning the Gualala River in the
early 1960s he had no idea he’d ever be planting grapes on it, but in 1998 old friend
Warren Dutton convinced him to do just that. On 9 wind-protected southeast facing
acres he planted 2 Dijon clones of pinot and Mac, his wife Barbara and son Rich have
worked and stressed over it ever since. The site wraps over the ridge at about 1,100 feet
elevation and has a spectacular view of the Gualala River, the Pacific Ocean, and Mac’s
neighbors at Hirsch and Martinelli vineyards. The fruit has the exceptionally thick skin,
deep color and natural spice that is so characteristic of Pinot from the high slopes of the
“true” Sonoma Coast. Even in this cool region, McDougall ripens fairly early, due to its
thin, well-drained soil, sheltered south slope and low yields. This same environment also
imparts the minerality and solidity of structure for aging for which the area is known.
This vineyard wonderfully represents the wild beauty and intensity of the Sonoma Coast,
both in its land and its fruit.
.
Winemaking Notes:
After hand sorting and destemming into small open top fermenters, the must was cold-soaked
for 7 days in order to gently extract color and spice and fruit characters, while
mitigating harsher tannins. To further this aim, no SO2 was used at the crusher. We
punched down up to 4 times daily, according to the stage of the fermentation (less often
at later stages to avoid harsh tannin pickup), but treat it very gently given the inherently
solid structure of the Sonoma Coast fruit. After fermentation the wine was racked into
French oak to age, then blended in spring from our favorite barrels to create this limited
offering. The wine then went back to barrels chosen for its further aging, before being
bottled in early spring of 2007.
Technical Notes:
| Appellation: |
Sonoma Coast
|
| Production: |
250 Cases
|
| Alcohol: |
13.8%
|
| Aging: |
Aged 17 months in
French oak
(45% new barrels) |