2008 C. Donatiello Floodgate Vineyard Block 15 Pinot Noir – Russian River Valley

Cranberry color, slightly opaque. (A thankful break from the ridiculously dark Pinot’s being produced today by many.) On the nose, cherry, cranberry, with a pleasant touch of earthiness. On the Palette: elegant. Despite the youth of this release, it’s a pleasure in the mouth, with velvet texture, wonderful balance and mouthfeel. Flavors of cherry and red fruit, with a nice finish, and lingering acidity. Read the full review on Simple Hedonisms.

Seeking to Define Natural Wine

Except for the absence of tie-dye, the second annual Natural Wine Week in San Francisco could have been an event right out of 1967.

Palate Press Wine of the Week – 2009 Lynmar Pinot Noir Rosé

Vibrant orange/pink hued salmon color. A lightly fragrant nose of strawberry, raspberry and hint of crisp Jolly Rancher watermelon. Don’t let the flavor descriptors fool you, this is a wonderfully dry rosé with no sweetness. Nice weight in mouth for a rose, balanced with acidity that will pair well with many foods. Hint of that beloved Pinot noir silkiness. Watermelon and cherry mid-palette. Pleasant finish. Considering the price and quality of Lynmar Estates wine, this is an excellent Price to Quality Ratio. Very Good, Strongly Recommend. Read the full review here on Simple Hedonisms.

2007 Paradise Ridge Nagasawa Vineyard Chardonnay – Russian River Valley

Vibrant yellow straw color. Hints of tropical fruit, pineapple, lemon on nose. Lush tropical fruit, pear and touch of butterscotch on the palette. Pleasing weight, mouthfeel, and lingering acidity on finish. Will pair nicely with many foods. This release has spent time on French oak, and has undergone partial Malolactic fermentation. An excellent example of how oak and Malolactic fermentation don’t mean you have to lose the expression of the fruit, or become a California butter-bomb. Only 225 cases made. Fruit is from their Estate Nagasawa Vineyard, Russian River Valley, Sonoma County. Read the full review on Simple Hedonisms.

2009 Lynmar Pinot Noir Rosé – Russian River Valley

Vibrant orange/pink hued salmon color. A lightly fragrant nose of strawberry, raspberry and hint of crisp Jolly Rancher watermelon. Don’t let the flavor descriptors fool you, this is a wonderfully dry rosé with no sweetness. Nice weight in mouth for a rose, balanced with acidity that will pair well with many foods. Hint of that beloved Pinot noir silkiness. Watermelon and cherry mid-palette. Pleasant finish. Considering the price and quality of Lynmar Estates wine, this is an excellent Price to Quality Ratio. Very Good, Strongly Recommend. Read the full review here on Simple Hedonisms.

2008 Rodney Strong Estate Vineyards, Russian River Valley Pinot Noir

After a few hours to blow off some funk, this showed as earthy, with raspberry, some dried strawberries, allspice and cloves. Use of new oak is a little heavy, loading jarring vanilla onto the finish. A couple of years in the cellar might bring it together, but the risk is a dumb period followed by loss of fruit.

Farm Versus Fish: Water Use in the Russian River Valley

It takes guts to grow premium wine grapes—plus a sizable amount of cash, a love of farming, and the fortitude to deal with the ongoing challenges, both environmental and political, of producing a great glass of wine. Frost may not be the biggest of a grower’s concerns, but it has become a vexing problem here in California’s Russian River Valley, where the rights of farmers sometimes go head to head with the rights of fish.

There’s a Time and a Place

For a long time, John Holdredge knew it was coming, but he kept it to himself. It was so contrary to his core beliefs that he questioned if he could do it. Then, one late afternoon in August of 2008, he heard himself speak the words out loud for the first time, almost involuntarily:

“I’m going to make a huge-ass Pinot.”

2008 Twomey Cellars Russian River Valley Pinot Noir

he most open and evolved of Twomey’s 2008 Pinot Noirs, this Russian River Valley ruby red beauty surprises with sunny orange peel on the nose opening up to ripe cherries. Soft with a zing on the front of the palate, opening up to berries and balanced acidity. Finish with a soft yet zingy finish. A perfect balance of yin and yang. Sister winery of Napa Valley’s Silver Oak, Twomey Cellars is located in Calistoga. Read more at Another Wine Blog.

2005 Dutton-Goldfield Dutton Ranch, Cherry Ridge Syrah

The nose has ground espresso and cocoa powder, blackberries, and some leather. The palate comes at you with waves of flavors. Blackberries and coffee, plums, all make up the attack. Fruits sweeten on the mid-palate, adding some blueberry to the blackberry. The espresso changes to unsweetened cocoa. There is interesting minerality the expands from the attack through the finish. Leather shows up at the end of the mid-palate and lingers with black fruit on the finish. This is really good wine. It is not Aussie Shiraz, all jammy fruit. It is also not Northern Rhone Syrah, all earth and olives. This has good fruit, earthy coffee and chocolate, and great terroir minerality. For David’s full two day review visit his blog, 2 Days per Bottle.

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