2006 PINOT NOIR - RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY / RUSSIAN RIVER SELECTION

This wine opens with alluring ripe cherry, raspberry and strawberry aromas and has plush, succulent dark berry flavors, complimented by lavish, spicy oak elements. It is deeply colored with layered complexity and a silky, sensual, long finish. The 2006 Russian River Selection Pinot Noir shows wonderful balanced acidity and generous fruit that will pair well with grilled salmon with a hoisin glaze.

The 2006 growing season saw a cool spring followed by a cool summer punctuated with a heat wave in July, and a relatively late harvest. These grapes were picked at an average of 23.8 degrees brix between September 9th and 28th. The fruit was then hand sorted, de-stemmed and moved to fermenters uncrushed for a 5-day cold soak, then fermented in small stainless steel tanks with regular punch-downs. The wine underwent malolactic fermentation and matured in a combination of new, 1, 2 and 3-year-old French oak barrels for 8 months before bottling.

This Pinot Noir was hand harvested from September 9 to 28, 2006 and sourced from famed vineyards of the Russian River Valley including the Starr Ridge, Rochioli-Allen, Cresta Ridge, Stiling, McIntyre and Archer Vineyards.