2021 Hirsch Vineyards Pinot Noir Maritime

Hirsch did not produce Maritime in 2020 due to smoke, but the 2021 Pinot Noir Maritime offers great aromatics influenced by the Maritime Fields where it originates. The estate’s highest-elevation vineyard, it sits above the Pacific Ocean and is surrounded by redwoods and wild fennel, which certainly seem to impact the wine’s bouquet. It has an incredible nose of wild minty herbs, violets, cherry liqueur, and wet stones. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it offers great, snappy energy, angular but fully ripe tannins, and a mouthwatering finish with notes of cranberry. It’s a fantastically structured wine that will benefit from another few years in bottle. Drink 2025-2040. Located in Fort Ross, overlooking the Pacific Ocean, David Hirsch purchased his estate in 1978 and planted his first vines in 1980. His daughter Jasmine Hirsch took over as winemaker with the 2019 vintage. They have been practicing biodynamic viticulture since 2011 and were fully converted over in 2014. Their focus and attention are on the site, resulting in wines that offer elegance and purity, with transparency in regard to their sense of place. While I have been a fan of these wines for a long time, they are continuing to push the bar higher and higher, slowly evolving their style to find balance and a new level of completeness in the resulting wines today. For readers who have not checked in on the Hirsch wines in a while, I would highly encourage you to seek these 2021s out.