In the Vineyard: Veraison Begins

It's been an interesting year so far, starting with a dry (drought) winter, followed by rain very late in the spring. We've had a mix of cool, warm and hot days this season, but mostly the weather has been on the cooler side, with many days of fog not clearing until noon, and then rolling back in by 6pm. Flowering started in mid-May, right on schedule, and because of our foggy weather, those vineyards that flower later have a lighter crop than usual, since the flowers did not set well in the damp air. Our unusually late rainy weekend (3 inches worth) in early May did a great job refilling the soil profile, which allowed the vineyards' first irrigation to be pushed back to late July. Now veraison has begun in most of the vineyards (with the exception of our Zin and Syrah), and the vineyards have seen their first shoot thinning, shoot positioning, suckering, and leaf pulling so that the growing berries get just the right amount of dappled sunlight. Right now, we're guessing harvest may be just a bit behind schedule, but it's really the late August and early September weather (post veraison) that dictates when the fruit will ripen. If you'd like to enter our pool and make your guess of our first vineyard harvested and the date, send your guess to valerie@duttongoldfield.com.

Terroir Discovery with Christopher

My first terroir discovery takes place as Dan and I are riding our bikes on the Old Bohemian Highway , roughly two clicks south of Occidental. We are gazing up at a tuft of a hill called the Freestone Hill Vineyard (see exact location by going to the AVA map at rrvw.org) We are admiring its neatly carved out parcels on a mound that looks like a huge haystack in the middle of a riverbed, with an old historic farmhouse perched on top. Dan points out our blocks which are located near the top on the steepest part of the slope roughly 750 ft above sea level and consequently partly to mostly above the fog line in this very cool, windy most western part of the Russian River Appellation. The Freestone Hill Vineyard is farmed by the Dutton family and located on a south-facing hillside overlooking the tiny town of Freestone. The first Dutton-Goldfield Freestone Hill Pinot Noir came from the 1999 vintage. If you happen to have a bottle, crack it open now and taste along with us. Here are Dan's tasting notes as they pertain to the make-up of the wine and vineyard from which it comes.

2006 Freestone Hill Vineyard Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley - Windy, cold Southwestern exposure on steep hillside, mix of new Dijon clones (planted in 1996), Goldridge clay/sand loams, partially below fog line. 2006 brought out the wildness and fresh berry character that are so much a part of the Freestone Hill personality.

The wine throws a complex set of aromas leading with blackberry, violet and a coriander-like aroma we refer to as "Freestone Spice". The vineyard is the epitome of what we expect from a cold-climate Pinot Noir vineyard. In years when the harvest gives us fruit that stands out as truly unique and different, we will bottle our favorite lots of this wine separately as a one of our single-vineyard designate wines; in other years, it will all be blended into our Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir to add that exotic spice component to the wine. This is a wine that is packed with flavor and opulence while still retaining its liveliness and balance. In the nose, it pops with black cherry, wild strawberry and sandalwood, and continues to come on the longer it sits in the glass. In the mouth, it's like an infusion of juicy blackberry, fresh cherries and sweet Asian spices, but is truly defined by its extraordinary balance of lively fruit, well resolved tannins and fresh acidity. This is a wine that shows beautifully now because of the fine tannins, but its wonderful balance clearly make it a wine built to age. 403 cases produced.

Next in the series, we will look just to the south at Marin County's Devil's Gulch Vineyard and discuss its profile and terroir. Here are some bullet points to help with the analogies and hopefully not confuse the issue.

ABOVE FOG LINE-generally warmer and drier, lighter soils with deeper more concentrated fruit
BELOW FOG LINE-generally colder and heavy soils, with higher toned fruit
OLD DIJON CLONES-deep intense and well suited to clay soils (not drought resistant)
MODERN DIJON DERIVITIVES-broader array of nuances and more drought tolerant
WENTE MUSQUE-Original California (pre UC Davis) Chardonnay clone-rich, textural, and aromatic
RUED - A floral adapted version of the old Wente clone, providing tangerine and exotic spices
GOLD RIDGE LOAM-sandy clay loams on shale and sandstone and fairly deep layered
LAUGHLIN LOAM-Thinly layered sandy loams on sandstone and shale
CLAY-heavier soils good for retaining water and contributing to vigorous growth
SANDY-Thinner well drained causing more stress on the vines and typically in higher elevation with sunnier aspects.

Salute!
Christopher Pappe

News & Reviews

The latest from Wine Spectator:

2007 Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir
"Starts out delicate and fragrant, with wild berry, raspberry and black cherry aromas, yet builds intensity, depth and complexity, revealing its depth of concentration...91 points."

2007 Dutton Ranch Chardonnay
"Well-structured, with rich layers of creamy fig, melon and apricot, gaining depth and complexity on the long finish...91 points."

2007 Russian River Valley Zinfandel
"Expressive aromas of blueberry cobbler and smoky licorice lead to supple yet concentrated plum, sage and pepper-beef flavors...90 points."

These just in from The Wine News:

2006 Rued Vineyard Chardonnay
"Fresh aromas of peach, sliced apple, cinnamon and new oak. Zaftig peach, apple and toasted oak flavors with just enough acidic structure to balance the rush of sweetness in the fruit-driven finish...94 points."

2006 Devil's Gulch Vineyard Pinot Noir
"Mixed aromas of black cherry, dark honey, cola and violets. Ample black cherry fruit and red licorice with a lick of mocha. Elegant finish with a lingering, toasted oak nuance...93 points."

2006 Freestone Hill Pinot Noir
"Earthy aromas followed by fresh cherry, vanilla, tea and glove leather scents. Tasty, juicy black cherry fruit and plum with well-integrated, combined tannins. Rich, lasting finish with caramel and mocha accents...94 points."

2006 McDougall Vineyard Pinot Noir
"Exotic tea, orange peel and clove aromas. Tart cherry and tea flavors with flinty, mineral-like accents and supporting fine-grain tannins and crisp acids. Youthful, compact finish with a range of dried fruit and mineral notes...90 points."

2006 Sanchietti Vineyard Pinot Noir
"Fresh plum and black cherry aromas. Round, supple red and black fruit with dusty, flinty mineral accents. Excellent length and weight with chalky black cherry fruit, charred oak and a spicy clove zing in the close...93 points."

Also in the news...

2007 Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir
"An elegantly styled Pinot, in a full, refined style. It is round, both floral and fruity in character (violet, plum, cherry, allspice, and toast), and a very long, harmonious finish. Very fine quality...4+ stars."
~ Restaurant Wine

2007 Morelli Lane Vineyard Zinfandel
"Very nicely concentrated aromas of blackberries, black plums and blueberries with a whiff of enriching milk chocolate are suggestive of a big wine to follow, and so it is. But, it is fruit and grapes extracts tied to bright acidity that make this wine full and complete rather than a turn towards overripeness. Time and honest-to-goodness fruit depth promise to see this wine gain in openness...90 points. "
~ Connoisseur's Guide

2007 Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir
"...in fine form with its benchmark blend of five parcels. A notable oak presence steps up, but the dense palate of plum skin, cherry and sassafras surges through. Intense and unabashed, all the more so given a modest 13.5 percent alcohol...A Top Ten Russian River Valley Pinot."
~ San Francisco Chronicle

To read more reviews, visit our website.

We have shelf talkers available (6 to a sheet) on our website that you can download and print out.

Wine Terminology
From Pinot Forum 2008 materials.

Fermentation (Primary): Conversion of grape sugar to alcohol, giving of C02 and heat.

Field Selection: A process in which cuttings for propagation are deliberately taken from many mother vines in an effort to privilege and preserve genetic diversity.

Filtration: Reasonably new to winemaking, this is a process of clarifying a wine by passing it through a filter usually constructed of several porous layers ranging from coarse to progressively finer, through which the wine is pumped under pressure.

Fining: An age old technique of adding a precipitating agent to a wine in order to remove small, suspended particles, such as tannins.

Franciscan Complex: Soil formed by earthquakes. The parent rock is a crazy quilt faulted mixture of oceanic rocks, formed 100 million years ago as the ocean floor slid east under the continent. Franciscan soils are dominantly light brown, sandy clay loam with higher magnesium content.

Free Run: At the end of primary fermentation, when the grape must is drained out of the fermentors, the free-run juice is that portion of the contents of the fermentation vessel that runs off without pressing.