Pinot Noir
2020 Oppenlander Pinot Noir
Nestled amongst the redwoods in the rural village of Comptche, California which means "Valley Among The Hills" Oppenlander Vineyard grows in peaceful solitude. Bill and Norman Shandel tend to a 20 acre vineyard cooled by ocean breezes that is often one of the last to fully ripen in Mendocino County. The vineyard namesake is for their Great Grandfather Charles Oppenlander. The elements of a long cool growing season combined with a unique clay loam soil lead to a wine with formidable structure, brambly fruit, and crisp oceanic acidity.
$57
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An exceptional year in the midst of a fire season, the isolation of this hanging valley near the Mendocino Coast protected this vineyard from harm in 2020, as it has been for over one hundred and thirty years. Picked in late October, this is one of the latest-ripening vineyards in Northern California.
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Brambly, peppery, herbed smoked meats laced with maple syrup power the scent of fruit from this obscure vineyard amid a redwood forest clearing in a remote, but maritime cool site in Mendocino County. Flavors are intense and complex with near-ripe wild blackberry, strawberry pie and cranberry on the late palate.
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Oppenlander Vineyard, Mendocino County, 14.8% Alcohol by Volume, 62 cases produced, <.01 residual sugar, 3.5 pH, 6.8 g/L TA, winemaker is Greg La Follette.
2021 Grower’s Reserve Pinot Noir
This unique blend comes from the Oppenlander Vineyard near the town of Comptche in western Mendocino County and Manchester Ridge Vineyard, up at 2,200’ elevation near the Pacific Ocean north of Point Arena. The Manchester’s coastal floral fruit, plush and lively belying its rough existence, compliments the highly structured and brambly red fruit of the Oppenlander Vineyard. Both of these sites are extremely cool and on the edge of what is possible for California viticulture.
$45
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The 2021 vintage continued a drought streak, but these cold sites still produced later harvests. As is usual for these remote and chilly locations, the last of these grapes coming into the winery in late October. The fruit was in excellent condition as we picked before the first of the fall rains.
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Highly structured and yet having great berry-cherry presentation, this second version of Growers Reserve shows how Pinot Noir can both have weight and structure and at the same time levitate, almost defying gravity. The wine is both complex and harmonious with a long finish and mild tannins.
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Fermentation was mercifully trouble-free for both lots. Ageing was likewise a piece of cake, with almost 2 years on the fine fermentation lees in approximately 18% new French oak.
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Appellation: Mendocino, Vineyards: Manchester Ridge and Oppenlander, Alcohol by Volume: 14.2%, Residual Sugar: Dry (<.01%), pH: 3.58, TA: 6.0 g/L, Production: 243 cases
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93 points
“It offers gorgeous brown spice aromatics, candied red cherry, blood orange, and crushed cacao nibs. A beautiful purity of red berry fruit is layered with saline minerals and glassy tannins. It's delicate but packed with more crunchy red fruits, florals and earthy flavours on the long finish.”
Jonathan Cristaldi - Decanter
2021 Fourth Act Pinot Noir
The primary vineyard of this blend is the Huichica Creek Vineyard in Napa Carneros. A smattering of other vineyards found their way into the blend, including single barrels of Manchester Ridge and van der Kamp up on Sonoma Mountain. The grapes were de-stemmed but not crushed and sent to 5-ton open-topped fermentors with 10% whole cluster at the bottom of the tanks. Fermentation was done using indigenous or “wild” yeast, uninoculated and pressed/racked to barrel before fermentation was complete. The young wine was racked early off of the yeast lees, blended and returned to barrel with 25% new oak, then aged for 17 months.
$65
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The 2021 vintage saw very dry conditions with an early budbreak and damaging frosts. This led to a lighter than normal crop for harvest, with excellent concentration. Harvest took place in early September for the main component of the blend, with the few remaining lots harvested from early to late October.
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Intense purple/red hues and a moderate depth of color greet the eye. Bright berry, earth and sandalwood grace the aromas of the wine, which follow through to the palate. An excellent backbone of acidity complements the finely-sculpted tannin structure. The aftertaste lingers with a long and complex finish.
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Carneros, Napa Valley, 14.1% Alcohol by Volume, 1,478 cases produced, <.01 residual sugar, 3.6 pH, 6.2 g/L TA, winemaker is Greg La Follette.
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“This velvety, plummy and mouth filling wine carries dark plums, black cherries and cloves on a rich texture backed by moderate tannins. From winemaker Greg La Follette, the wine is steeped in delicious fruits and has just enough acid structure to balance them well.” - 93 points
Jim Gordon, Wine Enthusiast, November 2023
2021 van der Kamp Pinot Noir
Made of 90% Pinot noir and 10% Pinot Meunier, this wine is a celebration of what friends and family can do together with many years of collaboration with each other and the land. One of the oldest Pinot Noir vineyards in Sonoma County and some of the most coveted fruit on the planet. It is farmed meticulously by brother-and-sister Ulysses and Malia and is the vineyard where one of the most hallowed names in Burgundy chose to first make his first red wine in the new world. Nestled in the col of the old volcano near the top of Sonoma Mountain, the north-facing slope provides one of the world’s best sites for growing the finicky Pinot grapes, both noir and Meunier.
$70
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The 2021 Vintage was extremely dry and ”cold, with frosts during the early growing season. Though the vineyard suffered little damage, the resulting harvest was very light, with less than half the crop expected on many vines. Picked on 3 different nights with the Meunier the last in the second week of October, the fruit was exceptional. The Swan clone was fermented separately from the Dijon 828 and La Tache using 10% whole cluster with the remainder of the fruit destemmed but not crushed. The Meunier was fermented as 100% carbonic maceration (whole cluster) and blended back in before bottling. Yeast and ML were all native.
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Ruby-translucent in color, the nose speaks to red fruits and pine duff. These flavors carry into the palate with a long, lingering finish of balanced acid and tannin play.
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van der Kamp Vineyard, Sonoma Mountain, 14.8% Alcohol by Volume, 72 cases produced, <.01 residual sugar, 3.54 pH, 6.3 g/L TA, winemaker is Greg La Follette.
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“Complex and savory herbaceous notes harmonize with tangy red and black fruits in this lip-smacking and deceptively full-bodied wine. Find bay leaf and green-tea aromas followed by red currants and sour cherries, all worth pondering over. Best through 2029.” - 95 points
Jim Gordon, Wine Enthusiast, November 2023