Region | |
---|---|
Subregion | U.S.A. > California > Sonoma |
Colour | Red |
Type | Still |
Jamie Kutch’s 2021 Sonoma Coast bottling of pinot noir includes fifty percent whole clusters in this vintage and comes in at an even thirteen percent octane. The wine offers up a superb aromatic constellation of cherries, beetroot, sweet stem tones, woodsmoke, raw cocoa, a refined base of soil tones, roses and a discrete foundation of new oak. On the palate the wine is bright, young and full-bodied, with excellent depth at the core, fine soil undertow and grip, ripe, buried tannins and a long, tangy and nascently complex finish. Structurally, this wine is certainly approachable right out of the blocks, but in terms of complexity, this is still a puppy and it would be infanticide to open a bottle until it has had at least a few years in the cellar to let all these layers emerge properly on the nose and palate! 2026-2065.
Full bottle 1,413 g – heavier than bottles of the rest of the range, presumably because of supply problems. The usual informative back labels. Jamie Kutch's biggest production (just) – a blend from all over Sonoma Coast that filled 25 barrels. Vines planted 1972-1999. Elevation 500-1,400 ft. Between three and eight miles from the Pacific. Mixed soils. Picked 7-23 September. 50% whole bunch. Like all these 2021s, hand-picked, spontaneous fermentation, natural malo, aged in used French barrels. Minimum effective SO2. Unfined and unfiltered.
Bright cherry red. Nervy aroma with maraschino-cherry notes. Lots of freshness on the palate which ends with a certain graininess, almost as though some of it had been aged in concrete. Fairly light-bodied. You could drink this now but it's probably worth waiting a few months.