Notes From The Winemaker

Preparing To Bottle The 2003 Pinots

I have spent the last several days racking the 2003 Pinot Noirs barrel-to-barrel and transporting the barrels from the old winery at Shingle Springs down to the new space here in Sonoma. In the normal course of things I would have bottled these wines before the 2005 harvest, but getting set up in the new winery was a higher priority this past year.

So far the 2003 Pinots have spent 29 months in barrel - a new record for me, but not unprecedented. The stunningly great 1992 Haynes Vineayrd Pinot Noir was in barrel for 28 months before going to bottle. Tasting each barrel during racking I was blown away by their textures and complexities, as well as their essential "Pinot-ness". WOW.

The Carneros is probably the most ready to drink - forward and soft. The Haynes is what I have come to expect it to be at this stage - undeveloped and closed-in, but incredibly silky and concentrated. The real eye-opener for me is the Nicholson Ranch Vineyard Pinot. This wine is consitiuted of 64% Dijon clone 115 and 36% clone 777. As of today this is both the most "Burgundian" Pinot I have ever made with respect to its aromatic profile, and the most "Californian" I have made in terms of depth of color and weight on the palate.

posted 3/03/2006 11:33:00 AM