This Pinot was brought over to my house on my birthday by a close friend. It was one of several Pinot's brought to the house but as always Russian River Pinots demand strict attention because of the reputation of the appellation. I for one have very scarcely found a Pinot from the Russian River Valley that was of poor quality. Yes, I have found a few that were a bit to heavy and over the top for my liking, but the quality is almost always present. Russian Hill Estate is a famliy owned and operated outfit located in the heart of the Russian River Valley. Edward Gomez and Ellen Mack established the winery in 1997 after a two-year intensive search for the appropriate site. The winemaker Patrick Melley is a self taught winemaker that has developed his craft with a firm trust in his "discriminating palate". For more info. on the winery and people behind this bottle visit : Russian Hill Winery
Now this bottle I am reviewing is their Estate Vineyards Pinot and is just one of various bottlings this winery produces. I did enjoy an older library Syrah that I will write up shortly too that I thought was quite impressive.
On the nose this wine shows notes of blueberry, plum, Bing cherry, and hints of prune. It has the distinctive quality and scent of Pinot grown in the Russian River AVA in that it has a wildness and big bright fruit quality. This wine is almost five years old already and thus shows some unique hints of prune but I though it was pleasantly complex.
On the palate the wine is full and rich in texture and exudes flavors reminiscent of ripe black cherry and plums. There is still some very nice sharp acidity although the tannins are now well integrated. I did get a slight bit of alcohol on the finish but for a wine marked at 14.4% I didn't find it overly intrusive.
This wine is very nice stuff and has held up really well for the last five years. The color of the wine is slightly faded as to be expected and has a subtle red-orange tinge to it. A very nice effort indeed. 89 points
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