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2001 DUTTON RANCH PINOT NOIR
The Wine
A rich yet complex wine, this vintage of pinot noir has vibrant aromas of black cherry, violets, toasty vanilla bean and raspberry that leap from the glass exhibiting hints of wild mushroom. Graceful aromas give way to flavors of plum and cherry with a cran-raspberry essence crossing the palate with a delightful undertone of wild strawberry. A long and silky lasting finish is accompanied with soft tannins, which suggest hints of pomegranate, raspberry and cranberry inviting another sip.
The Vineyards
Dutton Ranch farms over sixty-five unique, separate vineyards located in the coolest area of the Russian River Valley, primarily in the sub-appellation known as the Green Valley. We have selected our favorite vineyards from our family’s Dutton Ranch to craft a wine reflecting our vision of a signature Russian River Valley Pinot Noir.
The Jewell and Thomas Road Vineyards are located two miles from one another, planted to clone Dijon 115 in 1995 and 1997. These are two distinct vineyards. Thomas contributes blackberry fruit and bold structures while Jewell lends flavors of bright cherry and raspberry with silky tannins. Located half-way between these two vineyards lies Widdoes Vineyard, lending earthy characteristics of classic Russian River Pinot Noir as Morelli Lane situated at the top ridge of the Green Valley adds a black cherry richness.
The Winemaking
After destemming into small open top fermenters, the must is cold-soaked for 5 days to gently extract spice and fruit characters, while extenuating harsher tannins. We punch down by hand up to four times daily, according to the stage of the fermentation. Each vineyard or block is fermented separately enabling us to afford optimization of each site according to its needs, and to provide us with the most flexibility for blending. After fermentation, the individual lots are racked into French oak to age. We carefully chose our barrels to emphasize the fruit and vineyard characteristics of the wine, rather than accenting the flavors of the barrels to avoid showcasing the oak itself. We carefully blend our favorite Dutton Ranch lot in the spring from these selected vineyards to allow the wine to marry and settle for unfiltered bottling. The final blend rests in barrel until early summer when we bottle with minimal processing.
Tech Notes 
2001 Dutton Ranch Pinot Noir
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