2015 Pinot Noir Jack Hill Vineyard

I was super-impressed by the 2015 and 2014 Pinots I tasted with Ross Cobb earlier in the year. The 2015 vintage was brutal. Yields were a punishing 0.3 tons per acre across the board. As a result Cobb did not bottle a number of his single-block Pinots from the estate Coastland vineyard. I am not sure that really matters, as the 2015s Cobb bottled are all superb. For the 2015s, Cobb opted for a relatively short (by his standards) aging regime of around 22 months in barrel. In the past, Cobb has often given his wines more time in barrel, an approach I have mixed feelings about. Although in most cases, the wines can handle the longer time in barrel, I am less sure that approach allows the fullest expression of site. In addition to the 2015s, I also had a chance to revisit most of the 2014s. Those wines remain medium in body and a touch nervous in construction. Even so, the 2014s are as expressive or better than they have been in the past. As always, Cobb has a preference for picking on the earlier side. The wines, from cool, coastal sites, are on the floral/savory side of things. More importantly, they are among the most distinctive artisan wines being made in California today. Readers will not want to miss them.