2017 Rodgers Creek

92 Points: Virginie Boone Wine Enthusiast - May 2020

“Tangy, edgy acidity underlies the buzzing core of this structured, high-toned wine from the new appellation. Stony mineral and crisp, crunchy red fruit defines its mediumbodied frame of complex tannin integration and graceful finish.”

The 2017 vintage followed a cool, very wet winter. The soils were moist and rich and required extra meticulous care with cover crop management and canopy management. There was a heat spike at the end of August that sped things up. The heavy winds that keep this vineyard cool did their job as we were able to give the grapes a few more weeks on the vine after the heat. Our block of Rodgers Creek is planted to the Pommard clone. The grapes were harvested by hand in the cool, early morning hours of September 15th, 2017.

The grapes for this Pinot Noir came from a vineyard called Rodgers Creek, which is perched at an elevation of 1,000 feet overlooking the city of Petaluma. It lies near the Rodgers Fault, which it is named after. This rugged, west-facing site benefits from rocky volcanic soils, and the steady cooling winds that flow through the Petaluma Gap.

• composition:

  100% Pinot Noir

• alcohol: 14.1%
• cases made:

  6 Barrels
  127 Cases

• bottling date: 08/14/2018
• aging:

  Aged 10 months in French oak, 50% new

• fermentation:

  Gently desteemed into open-top fermenters; three day cold soak; cap management included pump-overs & punch-downs