Spring Release Wildrose Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir
2021

Winemaker’s Notes

This is our twentieth vintage of Wildrose, and these vines have settled into comfortable middle-vine-age while producing consistently outstanding quality. Organic farming, zero irrigation, cover cropping and regular composting mean the vines are super-healthy and set for their next twenty years. We’re harvesting the fruit at moderate sugar/alcohol these days and using non-destemmed whole bunches in the fermentation tank which adds lovely aromatic lift, generosity, and suppleness to the wine. The 2021 bottling is one of our finest yet, certainly on par with the classic 2018 and 2014. During my tasting the wine grew in complexity in the partial bottle over five days, so this vintage evidently has a long life ahead of it.

Lifted aromas of sandalwood, rose petal, raspberry, and fragrant orange zest that are precise and focused. The palate is packed full of the most intense red and black berry fruits—generous, supple, and lilting. Licorice and Asian spice notes add intrigue. There’s real elegance and poise to the wine with subtle intricate detail. Tannins are round and buffered by the wine’s layered texture. There’s rising perfume and red mineral freshness to the wine’s deep resonating finish. Drink between late-2023 and 2031. A beautiful and classic expression.

Andy Smith