2019 Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley
Crushed raspberries and strawberries, rich and opulent with a hint of earthiness. Beautiful core structure with a long finish.
In Stock
Wine Specs
Vintage
2019
Varietal
Pinot Noir
Appellation
Russian River Valley
Harvest Date
Sept 19 - Oct 15, 2018
Sugar
0.0
Acid
6.1gms/L
pH
3.65
Aging
11 months, French Oak 10% new - 10% one year - 80% neutral
Fermentation
Native Yeast
Bottling Date
Aug 21, 2019
Alcohol %
14.4
Wine Profile
Tasting Notes
Starting in 2013 I have been using a portion of the wines we produce from the Tina Marie vineyard in the RRV Pinot. The elements this vineyard provides are of pure Pinot red fruit character. The quality of the red fruit from Tina works well with the earthy and spice components of the other two vineyards. The 2018 vintage shows the characteristic cranberry/strawberry red fruit with a tinge of licorice. In the underside of this beautiful garnet wine is the tell tale earthiness and spice that ‘dirties up’ the lovely red fruit, something that I love in this wine. The mouthfeel is elegant with a satin texture that carries long with just enough acid and tannin for proper structure. While the 2018 is drinking beautifully now, it will age for 10+ years like other RRV of the past.
Vineyard Notes
At Enkidu, our focus is on producing Pinot Noir from both the Russian River Valley and the Sonoma Coast. These unique coastal influenced appellations are collectively capable of producing the finest Pinot Noirs in the New World. While we continually search for vineyard designate quality vineyards, we also produce wines from various vineyards to construct our appellation noted wines. In 2018, 50% of the grapes were sourced from our flagship vineyard, Tina Marie, in the Green Valley of RRV. Pinot Noir was also sourced from two other vineyards in the Russian River Valley with whom we have been working for the past decade. Combined, we utilize five different clones, each contributing a nuanced complexity to our wines. In what has become the signature of our RRV, the layered complexity of fresh crushed fruit with a spicy earthiness is on full display in 2018.
Production Notes
As with our vineyard designated Pinot, we added 15% whole clusters to the whole berry, destemmed fruit, which then underwent a four-day cold soak, involving a twice daily gentle pump over of the juice. Once fermentation began, we punched down twice daily until fermentation was complete. After a four-day extended maceration, we pressed to French oak barrels, 10% new and 10% once used, 80% neutral. Before bottling, we racked only one time. After selecting the barrels that would make up the RRV blend, we bottled after 11 months in barrel.