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: 2014 Rhys "Porcupine Hill" Anderson Valley Pinot Noir

2014 Rhys "Porcupine Hill" Anderson Valley Pinot Noir

SKU #1296589 94 points John Gilman

Outer quote mark As I noted last year, the Porcupine Hill bottling of Pinot Noir from Rhys comes from the new, high density plantings in the Bearwallow Vineyard that went in the ground after the winery bought the vineyard in 2008. The 2013 version was the inaugural vintage for the Porcupine Hill cuvée and the 2014 follow-up is very impressive, wafting from the glass in a constellation of black cherries, red plums, pomegranate, chicory, dark soil tones, a bit of bonfire, just a whisper of fresh rosemary and a very understated framing of spicy oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, focused and very transparent in personality, with a lovely core of black fruit, suave, seamless tannins, tangy acids, great balance and a very, very long, elegant and promising finish. Last year, I had to give the regular bottling from Bearwallow the slight nod over the Porcupine Hill, but this year the reverse is the case. This is a beautiful, beautiful bottle of Pinot Noir in the making! 94+ Inner quote mark (8/2016)

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2014 Rhys "Porcupine Hill" Anderson Valley Pinot Noir

Price: $89.99

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JG: 94

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Varietal:

Pinot Noir

- One of France's most legendary grapes and the grape that earned Burgundy its reputation. The parent of varietals like Pinot Gris/Grigio and Pinot Blanc, Pinot Noir is blue to violet to indigo in color with relatively thin skins, and it is said to have been cultivated in France for more than 2,000 years. At its best, Pinot Noir creates elegant wines that are filled with primary red fruit aromas and flavors while young, revealing with an array of secondary characteristics like earth, smoke, violet, truffle and game with age. The varietal is also known, perhaps better than any, for its ability to translate terroir, or a sense of place. While the best Pinot Noir still comes from Burgundy, it is being produced with increasing success in cooler climates around the world. In France, it is part of the trifecta of grapes that can go into Champagne, and it is also grown in Alsace, Irancy, Jura, Savoie, Lorraine and Sancerre. Outside of France it is produced under the names Pinot Nero and Blauburgunder in Italy's mountainous regions, as Spätburgunder in Germany and as Blauburgunder in Austria. In the US, Pinot Noir has found suitable growing conditions in the cooler parts of California, including Carneros, the Russian River Valley, the Anderson Valley, the Sonoma Coast, Monterey County, the Santa Lucia Highlands and Santa Barbara County, as well as in Oregon's Willamette Valley. In recent years, New Zealand has demonstrated its ability to interpret this hard-to-grow varietal, with successful bottlings coming from careful and attentive growers in Central Otago, Martinborough and Canterbury. Chile is also an up-and-coming region for Pinot Noir, creating fresh, fruit-forward, early-drinking and affordable Pinots from the coastal Casablanca Valley and the Limari Valley.

Country:

United States

- When people consider domestic wine, they normally think about the state of California. The fine viticultural Region within California, including the Napa Valley, Sonoma, Santa Cruz Mountains, Mendocino and Santa Barbara, are capable of growing grapes of world-class quality. But there's plenty of fabulous wine coming from other states, too. Oregon, Washington and New York are also causing eyebrows (and glassware) to be raised around the world.

Sub-Region:

California

- With the explosive growth that California's wine industry has seen the past several years, it's easy to view winemaking and grape growing in the Golden State as a recent phenomenon. And while it's true that California's viticultural history is brief compared to several European countries, this state's roots date back well over 200 years. Due to the enormous response to California wine within the United States and worldwide, there are thousands of excellent and diverse wines being produced within the state each year.

Specific Appellation:

Anderson Valley/Mendocino

- Cooled by the nearby ocean and the seemingly omnipresent bank of oceanic fog, this picturesque wine region is home to a wealth of cool-climate grapes like riesling and gewürztraminer plus chardonnay and pinor noir, which are responsible for impressive and intense sparkling wines.