2009 Pinot Noir Cerise Vineyard

I was totally blown away by the wines I tasted with proprietor Ted Lemon. These are some of the most refined, polished Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs being made in California today. I can't recommend the wines highly enough. Lemon describes 2009 as a mild season with prolonged bloom that resulted in considerable shatter and a high amount of shot berries. There was no real heat to speak of in September. The 2010s were harvested during the first two weeks of October, much later than the 2009s. I also tasted a handful of 2010 Pinots from tank that appear promising, even if stylistically they aren't as generous as the 2009s.

Long-time pinot and chardonnay specialist Ted Lemon is convinced that the market is tiring of the 15% pinot monsters that miss out totally on the finesse of the variety. "The train has left the station for big, rich pinots in Sonoma County," he said. "They're simply too fatiguing. In 2009, a lot of people may have picked earlier than they would have previously, especially with pinot noir." Lemon describes the 2009s as a dry, firmly tannic, backward set of wines; his pinot fruit came in with the lowest sugar levels in many years, with a number of wines in the 22.5 degrees Brix range. "They're more intellectual wines, but they were not especially high in malic acidity," he added. Lemon vinified most of his 2009 pinots with 20% to 30% whole clusters. I tasted the 2009s in March about three weeks after they had been bottled.