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Wine Details
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Description:
2002 turned out to be a Pinot Noir winemaker's dream in California's cool coastal appellations, particularly in the Sonoma Coast and Russian River Valley. After the warmer season and more prolific harvest of 2001, cool weather in the spring of '02 limited the flowering of the grape clusters and ensured a small crop. The typical summer weather pattern of foggy mornings and sunny afternoons ripened the grapes in perfect fashion without any unusual hot or cold spells in September. The wine coming out of the fermenters promised both great concentration and finesse--an unusual balancing act that occurs in only two or three vintages each decade.
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Varietal Definition
Pinot Noir:
The name is derived from the French words for ‘pine’ and ‘black’ alluding to the varietals' tightly clustered dark purple pine cone shaped bunches of fruit. Pinot Noir grapes are grown around the world, mostly in the cooler regions, but the grape is chiefly associated with the Burgundy region of France. It is widely considered to produce some of the finest wines in the world, but is a difficult variety to cultivate and transform into wine. By volume most Pinot Noir in America is grown in California with Oregon coming in second. Other regions are Washington State and New York.During 2004 and the beginning of 2005, Pinot Noir became considerably more popular amongst consumers in the United States, possibly because of the movie Sideways. Being lighter in style, it has benefited from a trend toward more restrained, less alcoholic wines. It is the delicate, subtle, complex and elegant nature of this wine that encourages growers and winemakers to cultivate this difficult grape. Robert Parker has described Pinot Noir: "When it's great, Pinot Noir produces the most complex, hedonistic, and remarkably thrilling red wine in the world."
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