2017 Chenoweth Ranch Pinot Noir
Chenoweth Ranch is planted to a mix of Dijon clones that deliver one of the juiciest, richest wines in our single vineyard lineup. Generous aromas of cinnamon, clove, dried cherry, blueberry and toasted almond leap from the glass. Bright red fruit and chocolate notes bring layers of complexity. The 2017 shows a suppleness and depth to the tannins that make for an exceptionally full, rich, wine while maintaining an elegant, sleek purity and graceful finish. Though cellar aging will give additional complexity, Chenoweth Ranch is one of the wines that shows its potential earliest.
The 2017 growing season began in March with cool temperatures and sustained rainfall, a welcome development after five years of drought. As the rains cleared, sunny and warm conditions prevailed. Flowering began as usual in May, but foggy and windy days caused incomplete pollination, creating small berries with fewer seeds and reduced crop yields. The upside is that small berries provide great flavor concentration and color. A very warm, beautiful summer advanced the growing season by almost two weeks, accelerating our picking to get the grapes into the winery at ideal ripeness. We started harvest August 18th for our sparkling wine and concluded on September 27th, making 2017 the fastest harvest since 2008. Fortunately, our strong farming relationships allowed for perfectly ripe fruit with excellent chemistry. When the fires broke out in Napa and Sonoma on October 8th, we had (along with 90% of Sonoma vineyards) picked all our grapes. 2017 is proving to be a fine year, producing wines of depth, finesse, focused vineyard character and delicious flavors and aromas.
Like several of our finest vineyards, Chenoweth Ranch was originally cultivated as an apple orchard. Planted in Goldridge soils on the far western edge of the Russian River Valley AVA, this beautiful 7-acre vineyard is in Green Valley, one of the region’s coolest areas, and is farmed almost entirely for Patz & Hall (Charlie Chenoweth makes a small amount of his own wine from the vineyard). Though enjoying excellent sunlight from its slight south-facing orientation, the vineyard is sheltered by steep western hills, which protect the Dijon clone grapes, helping the fruit to retain natural acidity.
100% Burgundian French oak barrels (50% new; 50% 1-2-year old)
Bottled without filtration to preserve the wine’s aromas and flavors and enhance aging potential
- Type:
- Red
- Varietal:
- Pinot Noir
- Region:
- California
- Appellation:
- Russian River Valley
- Vintage:
- 2017
- Blend:
- 100% Pinot Noir
- Alcohol:
- 14.5%
- Fermentation:
- Multi-yeast fermentations (native yeast, followed by cultured yeast); 10% whole cluster added at fermentation; 100% malo-lactic fermentation in barrel