2021 Pinot Noir Blue Slide Ridge 750 ml
Appellation
Fort Ross - Seaview
Profuse aromas of black plum, black currant, and sweet oak spice fill the glass and your nose. Balanced both in tannins and acidity, the palate has flavors of Santa Rosa plum and ripe raspberries. Supple flavors of black cherries are found in the lingering finish.
Wine Specs
Vintage
2021
Varietal
Pinot Noir
Appellation
Fort Ross - Seaview
Vineyard Designation
Blue Slide
Alcohol %
15.2
Wine Profile
Tasting Notes
Profuse aromas of black plum, black currant, and sweet oak spice fill the glass and your nose. Balanced both in tannins and acidity, the palate has flavors of Santa Rosa plum and ripe raspberries. Supple flavors of black cherries are found in the lingering finish.
Vineyard Notes
Blue Slide is named for its magnificent formations of blue rock. Directly below the vineyard a sheer cliff drops into the small winding “Marshall Creek”, showing off great cerulean shards jutting out from beneath the earth’s surface. In 1995 Lee Sr. and Carolyn Martinelli planted this six acre vineyard of Pinot Noir on a steep slope, under the guidelines of Helen Turley. This site was once prime grazing land for sheep, located on the second ridge inland from the Pacific coastline.
Production Notes
2021 was the driest year on record since they started keeping records 127 years ago. It was also the third year of drought conditions for Sonoma County. Contrary to these conditions, the summer was relatively cool and started two weeks later than the previous year. The drought conditions did bring ripeness to each of our varieties at just about the same time. By the end of the first week, we had 40% of the total tonnage in the winery. This included Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Zinfandel from both Fort Ross-Seaview and Russian River Valley. Despite being a very compact harvest, small clusters and berry size have yielded exceptional quality which makes 2021 a standout vintage.