A charming Swan from the Russian River Valley

This was a low key, mid-week dinner at home and we were sipping our wine. “Wow, this wine is delicious!” my husband suddenly said. I showed him the bottle. It was a 2008 Joseph Swan Pinot Noir Cuvée de Trois Russian River Valley, a fairly-priced wine from Russian River Valley Pinot Noir pioneer Joseph Swan Vineyards.

Located in the Russian River Valley, Joseph Swan Vineyards was founded by Joseph Swan in 1989. He was a retired pilot with no formal viticulture education, but after taking many trips to France, he became known for introducing new methods of winemaking that seemed revolutionary at the time in the United States. These techniques included whole cluster fermentations, extended maceration for more color and depth, and fermenting without the addition of sulfur.

Joseph Swan's son-in-law Rod Berglund is now in charge of the winemaking. He introduced the “Cuvée de Trois” in 1999, a blend from three Russian River vineyards, each site contributing unique characteristics to the final cuvée.

The wine is a charmer. The nose is expressive with aromas of red cherry, spices, and earthy notes, and the palate has a silky, juicy texture, showing more finesse than power with a well-balanced complexity. Delicious indeed!

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Napa and Sonoma trip: Dutton-Goldfield Winery

After a nice lunch in Forestville, we met Valerie Wathen from Dutton-Goldfield at the winery's tasting room that it currently shares with Balletto Vineyards on the outskirts of Santa Rosa.

Dutton-Goldfield is the partnership of grapegrower Steve Dutton, a fifth generation farmer in the Russian River Valley, and winemaker Dan Goldfield. The winery's main focus is to produce cold-climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and also a bit of Zinfandel, Syrah and Pinot Blanc. Most of the fruit is sourced from the various vineyards of Dutton Ranch in the Russian River Valley AVA


Russian River Valley AVA

With Valerie, we tasted the following wines:

• 2007 Dutton-Goldfield Chardonnay Dutton Ranch: a blend of five Dutton Ranch vineyards from the coolest part of Russian River Valley. My notes: ripe apple and pear on the nose, creamy and lush on the palate with some good acidity, elegant finish.

• 2007 Dutton-Goldfield Pinot Noir Dutton Ranch: a blend of five Dutton Ranch vineyards from the Russian River Valley. My notes: sweet and spicy cherry aromas on the nose, bright and fruity on the palate, earthy finish.

• 2007 Dutton-Goldfield Pinot Noir Freestone Hill Vineyard: farmed by the Dutton family, the Freestone Hill Vineyard overlooks the tiny town of Freestone located between Sebastopol and Bodega Bay. This cold-climate wine is bottled separately only in years when the fruit stands out as truly unique. My notes: exotic spices on the nose. On the palate, herbs and licorice flavors, very distinctive.

• 2007 Dutton-Goldfield Pinot Noir Devil's Gulch Vineyard: located on a steep hillside near the Point Reyes Peninsula in Marin County, the Devil's Gulch Vineyard is farmed by local grower Mark Pasternak, a viticultural pioneer in Marin County. My notes: deep color, red and black berry aromas on the nose, rich and complex on the palate, lingering finish.



• 2007 Dutton-Goldfield Zinfandel Morelli Lane Vineyard: planted with Zinfandel, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, Morelli Lane Vineyard lies just north of the town of Occidental in the Russian River Valley. My notes: nose of sweet blackberry, lots of fruits on the palate, lively acidity.

My favorites were the Freestone Hill and the Devil's Gulch Pinots and I bought a few bottles of each to bring back home. These wines should age well, said Valerie, so I am looking forward to retasting them in a few years.

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•  Napa and Sonoma trip: Hanzell Vineyards
•  Napa and Sonoma trip: Emeritus Vineyards

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Napa and Sonoma trip: Emeritus Vineyards

After a solid breakfast in downtown Sonoma, we drove towards Sebastopol in the Russian River Valley for our appointment with Chris Mattson, National Sales Manager at Emeritus Vineyards. The winery occupies a functional warehouse-like building on Highway 116 and was not easy to find.

Most of our time with Chris Mattson was spent in the winery's home vineyard (also called Hallberg Vineyard). We looked at how the vines had to be pruned and trained, and discussed weather, soil, and experimentation with dry farming.


In the vineyard with Chris Mattson

Planted exclusively to Pinot Noir, the 100-acre Hallberg Vineyard is located on Sonoma County's Gold Ridge, a ten-mile-long low ridge running from Sebastopol to Forestville. The area is characterized by well-drained soils made of fine sandy loam and a cool climate thanks to Pacific Ocean breezes and late afternoon fog that stays untill mid-morning during the growing season. Sonoma's Gold Ridge is also called America's Cote d'Or and is home to many top-flight Pinot Noir producers.

Then it was time to taste some wine and meet winemaker Nicolas Cantacuzene. The French-born and American-trained Cantacuzene had recently replaced Burgundy-trained veteran winemaker Don Blackburn, who sadly passed away last April.

While we tasted and compared several barrel samples, from lots with different soil types or different watering levels, including one completely dry-farmed, Nicolas Cantacuzene explained to us how he will blend these wines in order to achieve a desired style of complexity and elegance.

I really enjoyed that visit. This is where we had the most informative discussions regarding vineyard management and winemaking. But it was already lunch time and we had to find something to eat before our next appointment at Dutton-Goldfield.




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•  Napa and Sonoma trip: Hanzell Vineyards

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Russian River Pinot Gris: a fresh alternative to Chardonnay

Summer is on the horizon and the white wine season is approaching. So why not trying to seriously explore California alternatives to Chardonnay? Take Pinot Gris for example. It is a mutant clone of Pinot Noir that originated in Burgundy in the middle ages. Nowadays, it is a major grape in Alsace producing full-bodied, rich white wines. It is also prominent in Italy's northeast regions of Veneto and Friuli where it is called Pinot Grigio. The Italian version is usually lighter and crispier than in Alsace.

Although Pinot Gris is a relatively newcomer to the Russian River Valley, it seems particularly well suited to the region's cool climate. Already, over 140 acres of Pinot Gris are planted in the area, which produces wines more in the Alsatian style than in the Italian Pinot Grigio style.

I recently had the opportunity to taste the 2005 J Pinot Gris Russian River Valley. The wine is produced by J Vineyards & Winery, a winery offering top-rated Sparkling Wine, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris from the Russian River Valley. Showing a pale straw color, it had a fresh and citrusy nose. On the palate, it was lively, slightly creamy, with notes of apple, honey and caramel. Try it, it should work really well with a dish of Pacific Island Fish in Coconut Sauce.

Technorati tags: wine food & drink