2007 Rhys Alesia Pinot Noir Falstaff Road Vineyard

The potentially outstanding Alesia 2007 Pinot Noir Falstaff Road Vineyard, another Sonoma Coast site, exhibits sweet raspberry and black cherry notes intermixed with steely acidity and hints of wet rocks, subtle herbs, and background oak, with some firm tannins in the finish This looks set for a long life of at least 7-10+ years. Rhys Vineyards produces very ambitious wines from vines planted in specific sites in the Santa Cruz Mountains. They use their second label, Alesia, for purchased fruit. At the conclusion of my tasting notes, I will list the other wines I tasted but which were all in such microscopic quantities (under 150 cases) that it is almost impossible to latch on to a few bottles unless you are on the mailing list. The vineyards are generally tightly spaced (2 by 3 feet for Pinot Noir and 4 by 3 feet for Syrah), and the clonal selections are multiple in order to hopefully achieve more complexity and nuance. This is an impressive, well thought out operation, believing, certainly with Pinot Noir, in whole clusters, no racking, and a minimal, artisinal approach to winemaking. The yields are naturally very small because of the terroirs, rootstocks, and clones, and the wines are made to age. Tel. (866) 511-1520