Arguing Pinot Noir on the Road to Anderson Valley
The wines from this remote California region are as distinctive as the place itself
Posted: Apr 13, 2011 11:00am ET
Quarreling over Pinot Noir
styles is a favorite pastime for wine lovers who have more spare time than I
do. It's basically an Old World versus New World argument, the classically
graceful reds of Burgundy against the boldly flavored Pinots of California. For
those of us who manage to love both, the whole thing seems like nonsense.
That may be why I like the Pinot
Noirs (and most of the other wines) of Anderson Valley in Northern California's
Mendocino County. At their best, the wines balance elegance and a sense of
place with rich and complex fruit, a satisfying reconciliation of the Old and
New Worlds.
Anderson Valley is the sort of
place you might imagine wine comes from, relatively untouched and untamed. Good
wine seldom comes from drab places, and this region's Pinot Noir,
Gewürztraminer and sparkling wine are as distinctive as the place itself.
Anderson Valley is a
two-and-a-half-hour drive north from San Francisco, and the last 20 miles are
an amusement park ride through tall redwoods and hills. Long, narrow and
sparsely populated, this valley is not the sort of place you happen upon by
coincidence. The designated American Viticultural Area (AVA) is about 16 miles
long and five miles across, with thickly wooded mountains close on either side.
The valley is named for Walter
Anderson, who stumbled upon it while leading a hunting expedition in 1851. Modern
winegrowing was introduced there in the mid-1960s. Soon after, the valley
became a haven for flower children fleeing San Francisco, and their distinctive
mark remains there today, a sort of hip, rural eccentricity.
The climate is cool compared to
Napa and Sonoma, with fog in the morning and breezes in the afternoon coming
from the nearby Pacific Ocean, but in the summer, temperatures can spike in the
afternoon and reach 100° F. Vineyards are planted mostly in the benchlands and
hills, and the soils are an eclectic mix of clay, loam and gravel.
Established wineries such as
Handley, Husch and Navarro have been producing good Pinot Noir in Anderson
Valley for years, and a new generation of wineries such as Londer, Black Kite,
Goldeneye and Breggo are upping the ante on quality. An excellent example is Londer Pinot Noir Anderson
Valley 2009 (90 points, $35).
The valley's white wines can be
as compelling at the Pinots, particularly crisp and aromatic wines like Pinot
Gris and Riesling. Navarro in particular has a knack for those wines, but
newcomers like Foursight Wines have become players; its Gewürztraminer Anderson
Valley 2009 (89, $20) is intense yet graceful, offering the sort of tart, spicy
nuttiness that makes good Gewürz so intriguing. I rated it 90 points, non-blind.
For many American consumers,
sparkling wine is their first introduction to Anderson Valley. Roederer Estate,
owned by Champagne house Louis Roederer, produces some of California's best and
most-consistent bubblies. Its non-vintage Brut Anderson Valley is widely
available around the country and sells for a bit more than $20.
While
the Roederer is easily found on the shelves, most Anderson Valley wines are
produced in modest quantities of 500 to 1,000 cases, so you'll seldom find them
at the big discounters. If you're lucky enough to have a good wine shop in your
town, that's the first place to look. But try not to get into an argument over
Pinot Noir while you're there. You could be stuck there all day.
You wrote "The climate is cool compared to Napa and Sonoma, with fog in the morning and breezes in the afternoon coming from the nearby Pacific Ocean"
This is misleading, over-generalized and incorrect. Which part of Sonoma? Freestone-Occidental? Surely not. Ft Ross? Not likely. Green Valley? Questionable. Alexander Valley? most probably.
Sonoma has a very large number of microclimates