94 points - Wine Enthusiast
Wine Specs
Appellation
Russian River Valley
Vineyard Designation
Hurst Vineyard
Harvest Date
September 15, 2014
Bottling Date
February 8, 2016
Wine Profile
Tasting Notes
The Pellegrini Hurst Vineyard Pinot Noir displays intricately detailed aromatics and deep flavor concentration with a flourish of roasted plum, kirsch and raspberry infused with cinnamon, dark chocolate, caramel and toasted hazelnut. A surge of succulent black cherry merges with rich mocha and savory truffle in the mouth. The luxurious texture, a hallmark of the Hurst Vineyard, unfolds across the palate with exceptional richness and persistent velvety smoothness.
Awards
Gold Medal: San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition 2017
94 points - Wine Enthusiast, October 2017
92 points - Pinot File, September 2017
90 points, 1 star - Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine, October 2017
Vineyard Notes
Hurst Vineyard is a hillside vineyard comprised of talcum-like Goldridge soil located in the Sebastopol Hills area of Russian River Valley. It benefits from the rush of cool marine air from the Pacific Ocean that comes through the northern edge of the Petaluma Gap. The vineyard straddles a ridge comprised of a steep northwest facing slope planted to Pommard 5 clone and a southeast oriented slope of 115 and 777 clones. The vineyard was established in 1999 and is skillfully cultivated by Arturo Robeledo Jr, partnering with owner Ben Hurst. The 2014 Pellegrini Hurst Vineyard Pinot Noir was derived exclusively from the Pommard block.
Production Notes
The 2014 vintage produced a Hurst Pinot Noir with exceptional intensity and concentration. Dry and warm season conditions accelerated bud-break and promoted early veraison. Coupled with this early start to the ripening period was a summer of consistent and moderate weather, encouraging gradual and extended maturation and nurturing generous aromatics and impressive density.
Winemaker Notes
The Hurst Pinot Noir was hand-harvested and hand-selected, then the clusters were gently destemmed. The whole berries were tipped gently into small open-top fermenters, where they underwent a five-day period of cold-soak before fermentation. During fermentation, the must is punched down several times daily to achieve gentle extraction. At the end of fermentation, the wine was drained directly to barrels by gravity. Barrel aging took place over 16 months, with a single racking of each barrel off its primary lees in the spring. The wine was handled minimally without pumping to preserve the intricate aromas, delicate layers of flavor and silken mouthfeel of Pinot Noir.