Goldeneye Pinot Noir is crafted to the high standards set by founder Dan Duckhorn, who expects its stature to match that of his Duckhorn Vineyards Merlot. His goal is not unrealistic — since its first commercial release, three successive vintages have made the author’s annual "Best of California" roundup.
Photo: BRUCE FLEMING
Anderson Valley Pinots superbly crafted, exquisitely varietal
By Steve PitcherIt had been happening quietly over the last decade. Folks close to the movement knew that change of some magnitude was afoot, but outsiders were largely unaware that western Mendocino County's Anderson Valley was being groomed for Pinot Noir greatness. At the Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival held in Philo in May, the proverbial curtain was drawn back to reveal the valley's collective achievement in pinot noir viticulture and vinification. Undeniably, the peaceful, bucolic Anderson Valley has emerged as one of California's best regions for Pinot Noir.
The festival's message was clear: It is no longer accurate to characterize Anderson Valley Pinots as merely elegant, delicate wines focusing on bright red cherry fruit and refreshing acidity. Such an epitaph is hardly demeaning, but that was then and this is now: There is added depth in the form of richer, more diversely flavored fruit (thanks to new clones) and complexities that are dazzling, underscored by that Anderson Valley constant - bright acidity. And while charming Pinots in the former style are still to be had - prized by many for their vibrant intensity - they are now joined by these more impressively polished interpretations of Anderson Valley fruit.
Ten years ago, there were 316 acres of pinot noir under vine in Anderson Valley; today there are 1,151, of which 1,141 are harvestable. The most marked jump took place from 1999 through 2001 at the height of the planting boom, when almost 500 new pinot acres came into production. Since then, Dave Bengsten, the Mendocino County Agricultural Commissioner, reports that the pace has slowed significantly: nine more acres in 2002, and only one last year.
Bob Nye, president of the Anderson Valley Winegrowers Association (AVWA) and also the operations manager of Goldeneye Winery, notes that there are currently between 2,300 and 2,400 total acres of wine grapes planted in Anderson Valley. Assuming the larger figure, pinot noir now accounts for almost half of the AVA's total vineyard acreage. Between them, three wineries - Roederer Estate (242 acres, including 80 acres leased from Pacific Echo), Goldeneye (176 acres) and Navarro (31 acres) - control roughly 40 percent of these plantings.
(On July 1, Pacific Echo was acquired from LVMH by Louis Roederer's Mendocino Land Company, which also owns Roederer Estate.)
Roederer uses its estate and leased pinot almost exclusively for sparkling wine, offering a limited-production, still Pinot Noir only in its tasting room. The clones of pinot noir favored by sparkling wine houses, not surprisingly, are those that ripen earlier and exhibit higher acidity than clones that deliver richer flavors and denser texture. "The Roederer Estate vineyard relies on pinot clones 32 and 33, along with Pommard clones 4 and 5," explains Bob Gibson, Roederer's director of vineyard management. "At Pacific Echo, it's mainly clone 115," he says.
The annual Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival, staged by the AVWA, has been held since 1998, initially at the County Fairgrounds in Boonville, and since 2001 under a spacious tent on the grounds of Pacific Echo Cellars in Philo. Its focus is unique in that it is the only wine event tailored for the public in California devoted exclusively to a single varietal from a single appellation. Any winery, whether located in the AVA or beyond, may pour its Pinot Noir at the festival so long as it is Anderson Valley soil that nourished the grapes.
The festival has grown in attendance each year since it moved to Pacific Echo. But according to Nye, "It's only within the last three years that overall quality of Anderson Valley Pinots has jumped tremendously." Devotees are taking note. "We had to arrange for a larger tent this year to accommodate the public," Nye explains, "although we did limit the number of tickets to 500 to make it easier and more comfortable for attendees to taste the wines and talk to the principals." (Next year's festival will be held May 21.)
In the festival's formative years, the participating wineries were almost exclusively local. This year, however, of the 24 wineries that poured their Pinots, eleven were based outside the AVA. The fact that such renowned Pinot artisans as Williams-Selyem, Copain, Siduri, Littorai, Hartford Court and Ici/La Bas are crafting Anderson Valley Pinots, with many designating the vineyard on the label, speaks volumes about the quality of the AVA's pinot fruit.
Barrel broker Mel Knox, who, along with winemaker Jim Clendenen and others, is a partner in Ici/La Bas, observes: "We have extensive experience in Burgundy. Two of the owners actually live there and can speak 'Burgundian' with the best of them. Jim and I have worked there and have learned many of the naughty words, mostly from Philippe Engel, and have drunk too much of the local product. In terms of flavor and style, Anderson Valley wines can offer a Burgundian profile without the annoying jet lag, language problems - Boontling is much easier than Burgundian - or expense. Once you get over those damned hills - sometimes a variation on jet lag - everything is just fine; it's truly a special place."
The "Boontling" to which Knox refers is a sort of argot or private language valley locals developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries using the syntax of English, but substituting parts for wholes or referring to things by their uses or their most famous users. For example, a pay telephone is a "bucky walter" because a man named Walter Levi owned the first telephone in Anderson Valley and a call originally cost a nickel, which in those days was the buffalo nickel, nicknamed a "bucky." Phone booths on the streets of "Boont" (Boonville) still bear signage identifying them as a bucky walter, such as the one outside the Horn of Zeese Café (which is Boontling for a cup of coffee), where a "bright-lighter" (city dude) can score some "bahl gorms" (good food), unless he wants to drive the extra six miles to "Poleeko" (Philo).
The hills Knox complains of rise between Cloverdale at Highway 101 and Boonville some 20 miles away, through which Highway 128 twists and turns on a roller coaster of a ride into Anderson Valley, where the road finally straightens out.
Because the expansion in pinot acreage here is relatively recent, growers have had the advantage of newer, numbered Dijon clones from Burgundy, as well as better rootstocks, modern vine-spacing methodology and advances in trellising. Hence, climate and soil are more fully exploited. In this regard, Anderson Valley is much like Santa Rita Hills, the cool-climate portion of the Santa Ynez Valley in Santa Barbara County that earned AVA status in July 2001. [Editor's Note: For more on the subject of Santa Rita Hills, see the "Pinot Paradise" article on p. 42 of the February/March 2004 issue.]
But unlike Santa Rita Hills, only about half of the Anderson Valley is well suited for pinot. From a viticultural perspective, Anderson Valley is about 15 miles long, the area between the headwaters of Anderson Creek and a point six miles below the community of Philo where the Navarro River enters a narrow defile, which is where "valley terrain" actually ends. Established in 1983, the Anderson Valley AVA varies in width from a few hundred yards to two miles. Within its overall cool, coastal climate, two separate and distinct macroclimates exist, both of which are suitable for producing grapes with intense fruit flavors, naturally balanced with higher-than-usual acidity and low pH.
About midway between Philo and Boonville, where steep hills crowd in from both sides until there is barely enough room for the two lanes of Highway 128 and its shoulders, a northeast-southwest geographical line bisects the valley, marking the point where summer fogs stop on most days, or at least thin out. West of this line and closer to the Pacific Ocean, there is greater rainfall, more night and morning fog and warm summer days. This is "down-valley" to the locals, who call its westernmost point the "Deep End"; it's a classic Region I climate zone, ideal for cool-climate varieties like pinot noir, riesling, gewürztraminer, pinot gris and chardonnay. (As measured on the UC-Davis scale that classifies winegrowing regions based on cumulative daily temperatures, Region I is the coolest, Region V the hottest.)
In the "upper-valley," a Region II - where a broad, mostly flat plain reaches east past Boonville - there is less rainfall and fog, resulting in colder winters and hotter summers. Pinot noir can sometimes get too ripe here, yet chardonnay ripens just fine and sauvignon blanc does splendidly. The temperature from the most southeastern point of the valley to the most northwestern point can vary as much as 15 degrees. Important up-valley vineyards include Ferrington, Cerise, Donnelly Creek (aka Elke) and the One Acre Vineyard, 1,600 feet up in the hills above Boonville; Cakebread's 60-acre pinot and chardonnay vineyard, also on the outskirts of Boonville, is expected to come into production this year.
The vast majority of Anderson Valley's vineyards and wineries are located down-valley, however, between Philo and the hamlet of Navarro. Northwest of Navarro, it is redwood forest almost all the way to the ocean, some 15 miles distant.
Deborah Cahn, who owns Navarro Vineyards with her husband Ted Bennett, recalls that, "When UC-Davis did climate studies of the Anderson Valley in the 1960s, they recommended Philo as the perfect place to ripen pinot noir." Cahn and Bennett left the San Francisco Bay Area to establish their winery in 1973 at what was then a 900-acre hillside sheep ranch. They began planting vines the following year. "We chose Anderson Valley as a perfect home for our favorite white wine, Alsace-style Gewürztraminer," Cahn explains.
Planting pinot noir was an afterthought. "California Pinot Noir didn't have a great reputation back then, but since our new home was chilly, we didn't have a lot of alternatives if we wanted a red that would ripen," Cahn notes. "We planted a measly four acres. It took us about ten years to make a Pinot Noir that really excited us, or anyone else for that matter. But ever since, we have enthusiastically increased Pinot production."
There are now 31 acres of Navarro estate-grown pinot noir and 15 more under long-term contract at neighboring vineyards. "We started off with one clone on one rootstock at one location. Now we have eleven clones, on eight rootstocks, at 14 sites," Cahn says. Each vineyard site is vinified as a separate lot by winemaker Jim Klein. Cahn adds that the different components of a site, such as clones or rootstocks, are frequently harvested, fermented and aged separately in order to see how each component affects the whole.
Navarro's wines - including two Anderson Valley Pinots, Méthode à l'Ancienne (referring to the old-fashioned practice of punching down the cap in pinot noir, as opposed to pumping over) and the more dramatic Deep End Blend, which sells out in a flash every year - are sold primarily winery direct via the tasting room, a mailing list made up of fiercely loyal customers and the Internet. (The winery's three-times-per-year newsletter is the best in the business.)
Anderson Valley is one of the few AVAs in which a fair amount of gewürztraminer will be found growing cheek-to-jowl with pinot noir. Their proximity may be the whim of the grower, but there's a reason why the two thrive in the same neighborhood. Plant geneticists have uncovered some surprising family history in recent years. Using sophisticated DNA analysis techniques, researchers have discovered that pinot noir is the product of a cross between pinot meunier (sometimes called schwarzriesling) and traminer.
Cahn came across that tidbit while thumbing through the American Journal of Enology and Viticulture (vol. 51, #1), published in 2000. The Austrian researchers' conclusion put the matter of grapevine compatibility and terroir into perspective for Cahn. "We always knew that there was a reason that both gewürztraminer and pinot noir are happy in the Anderson Valley; both are sensitive to heat and ripen at about the same time," she observes.
In addition to Navarro, several other Anderson Valley wineries produce both Pinot Noir and Gewürztraminer, including long-timers Handley Cellars, Husch Vineyards and Lazy Creek (under owners Josh and Mary Beth Chandler, who acquired the property from founders Hans and Theresia Kobler in 1999). Lazy Creek's 9.5 acres of 35-year-old pinot vines are the oldest in the valley and include the Romanée-Conti clone imported many years ago by the legendary winemaker Martin Ray; five acres of younger vines are clonal selections of the older vines as well as some of the latest Dijon clones, including 667 and 777.
Among the newcomers, only Londer Vineyards has thus far embraced both Pinot and Gewurz, although Goldeneye has a Gewurz in the works that may one day join its superb Pinot. The latter is Duckhorn's outpost in Anderson Valley, that, by the way, happens to lie along the migratory pathway of the Common Goldeneye duck. >
Better known for its Napa Valley Bordeaux varietals, Duckhorn has turned to the Anderson Valley with enormous enthusiasm and financial commitment. "Our vision for Goldeneye was simple," says founder Dan Duckhorn: "To craft a distinctively California Pinot Noir of equal stature to our Duckhorn Vineyards Merlot." The first commercial release of Goldeneye Pinot Noir was a remarkably impressive 1998 that earned "Pinot Noir of the Year" status in my annual end-of-the-year Best of California report in the December/January 2001-02 issue. (Each successive vintage has made the list.)
Of the newcomers to the valley over the last decade, Goldeneye is arguably the most sophisticated, visible and ambitious. After six years of searching for just the right location and experimenting with Pinot Noir production, by 1996, Duckhorn and company had narrowed their focus to Anderson Valley. When the 80-acre Obester Ranch just outside Philo quietly went on the market that year, they jumped at the chance to acquire the property, which also included a small winery and vineyard. "From a scarce six acres of vineyard, we've carefully and methodically grown Goldeneye to include five Anderson Valley estate vineyards planted to 176 vine acres, with 19 different clones of pinot noir on 14 diverse rootstocks in separate blocks," Duckhorn explains. "Each block is harvested, vinified and barrel aged separately to allow flexibility in creating the final blend," he notes. Duckhorn anticipates that its current 3,900 case production will eventually top out at 20,000 cases.
Floodgate Vineyard, purchased in 2003 and planted to pinot noir, gewürztraminer and pinot gris, is Goldeneye's latest acquisition. It is situated on a hillside in the deepest part of the Deep End just about as far to the northwest as grapes can ripen in the AVA - as the French say, à la limite. The new owners were obliged to come up with another name for the site (their choice is currently undergoing a trademark search) because only the land was acquired, not its name.
Goldeneye's winemaker Zach Rasmuson, who came on board last August after making wine at nearby Husch Vineyards for three years and previous stints in Napa Valley at Stag's Leap Wine Cellars and Robert Sinskey Vineyards, has a new, state-of-the-art, gravity-flow winery in which to practice his craft. "Pinot noir is an amazing, malleable grape," Rasmuson observes. "You need to be gentle shaping the wine. It's a process of minimal intervention, of finesse not muscle. I'm not trying to replicate the wines of Burgundy at Goldeneye, nor am I trying to make a lighter style California Pinot Noir. Pinot Noir reflects its terroir with remarkable clarity," he continues. "Using fruit from our estate vineyards I have an extensive palette of flavors [from which to draw]. The result is an extracted, elegant wine."
The Pinot that doesn't make the stringent cut for Goldeneye is bottled under the more modestly priced Migration label ($26). "Future Goldeneye bottlings will include smaller-production estate-grown and vineyard-designated wines," Duckhorn confides, alluding to estate vineyards with names like "Confluence" and "Monument Tree." (And if there's ever a Goldeneye Gewürztraminer from the "Randolph Block" of the Confluence Vineyard, you read it here first.)
With scarcely more than 3,000 inhabitants Anderson Valley is one of California's least populated wine regions (Boonville could be considered the valley's "metropolis" with a population of 713; Philo, the next largest community, has but 473 residents), yet this AVA looms large for Pinot aficionados. Superbly crafted, exquisitely varietal Pinots from the valley's vineyards can now be expected on a regular basis, albeit in comparatively small quantities. But that's simply the way it is with fine Pinot Noir.
Based in San Francisco, Contributing Editor Steve Pitcher may be reached via e-mail at wine2words@aol.com.
Tasting Bar
The following Pinots represent the best of those tasted (open) at May's Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival. A handful were previously featured in the June/July (West Coast Case, p. 84), and are therefore marked "WCC."
Elke, 2001 Pinot Noir, Donnelly Vineyard, Anderson Valley - $24: Slow-to-open nose of crushed ripe strawberry and white chocolate. Luscious and juicy with good acidity, this velvety smooth, up-valley Pinot is brimming with ripe strawberry fruit accented by subtle sandalwood spice. (840 cases) Score: 90
Goldeneye, 2001 Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley - $48: Forward, fragrant aromas of black cherry-strawberry fruit, vanilla cream, violets, orange zest and brown spice with hints of smoked meat and mocha. Ultraplush with ripe, medium tannins and bright acidity, layers of dried cherry-wild strawberry, star anise and roasted coffee bean. An intensely varietal Pinot that finishes long and smooth. (2,500 cases) Score: 93 [WCC]
Gryphon, 2000 Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley - $45: A premier release from this Carmel Valley-based producer that offers attractive aromas of wild strawberry and Asian spice accented by mineral notes. Elegant, silky smooth and juicy with medium tannins, remarkably layered flavors of ripe strawberry and minerals, and a well-focused, lingering finish. (140 cases) Score: 91 [WCC]
Gryphon, 2000 Pinot Noir Reserve, Anderson Valley - $58: The companion reserve release exhibits oh-so-enticing aromas of wild strawberry, sweet, slightly smoky oak, Asian spice and an intriguing hint of grapefruit. Luscious and complex with medium tannins and ripe strawberry-raspberry fruit enhanced by loamy earth and smoky oak; deep, persistent flavors linger on the exquisite finish. (90 cases) Score: 93 [WCC]
Handley Cellars, 2001 Pinot Noir Reserve, Anderson Valley - $48: Very attractive, elegant aromas of dried cherry and strawberry with a wisp of smoke. Luscious, deeply fruited and juicy with medium tannins, this is Milla Handley's finest Pinot to date, exuding copious red fruit within a firm frame of acidity and judicious oak, finishing with a smoked meat note. (205 cases) Score: 90 [WCC]
Lazy Creek, 2002 Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley - $35: Fragrant, very appealing nose of strawberry fruit, a touch a herbs and white pepper. Plump and juicy in the mouth with medium tannins and crisp acidity, great concentration and depth of flavor offering perfectly ripe red fruit tinged with allspice. Complex and generous with an extended finish. Decanted from magnum. (430 cases) Score: 92
Londer, 2002 Pinot Noir Paraboll, Anderson Valley - $45: ("Paraboll" is Boontling for very good red.) This second vintage from Winemaker Greg LaFollette, equivalent of a reserve, is superb, offering complex, enticing aromas of red cherry and blackberry, loamy earth, dried lavender and subtle rose petals. Rich, concentrated and balanced by crisp acidity, this exciting Pinot has deep flavors that echo the nose. (496 cases) Score: 93
MacPhail, 2002 Pinot Noir, Toulouse Vineyard, Anderson Valley - $35: Attractive, upfront aromas of red cherry and cassis accented by a forest floor earthiness and white pepper spice. A powerful, masculine-style Pinot loaded with luscious fruit, ripe, medium tannins and obvious oak. Unfined and unfiltered; the oak rush should moderate with cellaring. (345 cases) Score: 89 [WCC]
Navarro, 2002 Pinot Noir Méthode à l'Ancienne, Anderson Valley - $22: Wonderfully fruity nose of freshly crushed wild strawberries, cranberry and pomegranate, accented by floral notes and a hint of sandalwood. Plush, sensuous and loaded with strawberry-cranberry fruit. Complex and expressive with mouthwatering acidity and ripe, medium-full tannins that promise further development with aging. (5,500 cases) Score: 92
Roessler Cellars, 2002 Pinot Noir, Savoy Vineyard, Anderson Valley - $42: Forward, expressive nose of smoky oak verging on bacon rind, a touch of meatiness and berry-cherry fruit. Soft, round and elegant with supple tannins and generous strawberry-cherry fruit tinged with brown spice and smoke. A multi-faceted Pinot distinctive for oak that enhances rather than overwhelms. (192 cases) Score: 92
Skewis, 2002 Pinot Noir, Floodgate Vineyard, Anderson Valley - $45: Forward scents of crushed strawberries, violets and exotic spice with a hint of gaminess. Luscious and velvety smooth with medium tannins, this lovely Pinot is loaded with ripe strawberry-black cherry fruit tinged with star anise. (110 cases) Score: 93
Williams-Selyem, 2001 Pinot Noir, Ferrington Vineyard, Anderson Valley - $57: Deep, perfumed nose of violets, clove, vanilla and red fruit lead to a burst of ripe, sweet strawberry-red cherry fruit in the mouth framed by medium-full tannins and brisk acidity. Finishes with hints of Asian spice in the lingering aftertaste. (423 cases) Score: 90 - SP
The Tasting Circuit
1 asterisk = regularly open to the public
2 asterisks = appointment required or suggested
*Brutocao Cellars, 7000 Highway 128, Philo (707) 895-2152 / www.brutocaocellars.com
**Demuth Winery, 16125 Deer Meadows Road, Boonville (707) 895-3729
Edmeades Vineyards (not open to the public) Its wines are offered at Kendall-Jackson Wine Center, 5007 Fulton Road, Fulton
(707) 571-7500 / www.kj.com
**Esterlina, 1200 Holmes Ranch Road, Philo (707) 895-2920 / www.esterlinavineyards.com
**Goldeneye, 9200 Highway 128, Philo
(707) 895-3202 / www.goldeneyewinery.com
*Greenwood Ridge, 5501 Highway 128, Philo (Winery in nearby Mendocino Ridge AVA) (707) 895-2002 / www.greenwoodridge.com
*Handley Cellars, 3151 Highway 128, Philo (800) 733-3151 / www.handleycellars.com
*Husch, 4400 Highway 128, Philo
(800) 554-8724 / www.huschvineyards.com
**Lazy Creek, 4741 Highway 128, Philo
(707) 895-3623/www.lazycreekvineyards.com
**Londer, 4830 Monte Bloyd Road, Philo
(707) 895-3900 / www.londervineyards.com
Mendocino Vineyards Tasting Room
Shared by:
Claudia Springs (www.claudiasprings.com)
Eaglepoint Ranch (www.lonetreewine.com)
Raye's Hill (www.rayehill.com)
17810A Farrer Lane at Highway 128, Boonville
(707) 895-3993
*Navarro Vineyards, 5501 Highway 128, Philo
(707) 895-3686 / www.navarrowine.com
Oak Arbor Vineyards (not open to the public)
(707) 895-2828
*Pacific Echo Cellars, 8501 Highway 128, Philo
(800) 824-7754 / www.avwines.com
**Philo Ridge, 2770 Nash Mill Road, Philo
(707) 489-2303 / www.philoridge.com
*Roederer Estate, 4501 Highway 128, Philo
(707) 895-2288 / www.roedererestate.net
*Christine Woods, 3155 Highway 128, Philo
(707) 895-2115 / www.christinewoods.com
