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As he does so well with Chardonnay, David Ramey hits a sweet spot with Pinot Noir, crafting a wine that marries perfume and acidity with a rich texture. The wine was sourced from five top vineyards planted to a variety of clones located along the Westside Road, a bucolic country lane of vineyards and dairy farms as well as “A-List” producers of Pinot Noir. While it’s a bit warmer here than in the hills closer to the ocean, foggy mornings keep the grapes from ripening too quickly. The 2018 season was exemplary with a cooler late summer that extended the time fruit spent on the vine, making for a more complex palette of flavors. At harvest, 25% of the fruit was processed as whole clusters, which adds savory spice to the nose and structure to the palate. Winemaking is kept simple with native yeast fermentation in tank, lees aging in barrel, and bottling with light fining and no filtration.
If there has been a movement in California away from buttery, tropical-sweet Chardonnay and over-ripe, high-octane Cabernet, surely one of the leaders is David Ramey. Located in picturesque Healdsburg, Ramey Cellars is a craft-winery that produces startlingly fresh and balanced Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon from vineyards in Sonoma County and Napa Valley. Many of Ramey’s wines express the terroir of single vineyards while others are specific to such appellations as the Sonoma Coast or Russian River Valley. With his master’s degree in enology from UC Davis, one might have expected Ramey’s wines to be faultless and squeeky-clean; however, an early internship at Chateau Petrus imbued him with the belief that wines should be restrained, balanced and crafted to accompany food. This combination of the empirical and the romantic (along with almost 20 years of experience at such wineries as Simi, Matanzas Creek and Dominus) has led him to experiment with indigenous yeasts and malolactic and barrel fermentation in search of a new California style. This style seeks to tame the naturally luscious and vivacious fruit of California with the traditional techniques of the Old World. Writing in the Wall Street Journal, novelist (and wine geek) Jay McInerny has described “his Chardonnays just a little more voluptuous than the average Puligny-Montrachet, his cabs less tannic than the typical Médoc.”
| Country | USA |
| Region | California |
| Appellation(s) | Russian River Valley (Sonoma) |
| Winery | Ramey |
| Vintage | 2018 |
| Color | Red |
| Varietal(s) | Pinot Noir |
| Closure | Cork |
| Volume | 750ml |
| Bottle Size | 8.0 x 30.0 |
| Case Size | 34.5 x 26.0 x 30.5 |
| Alcohol | 13.5% |
| Product Code | RM18RRP |
| UPC | 185983000282 |
94 points – Jeb Dunnuck; 93 points – Wine Advocate; 90 points – Wine Spectator.
Aromas of cranberries, pomegranate, and wild raspberries mingle with hints of rose petals, cinnamon, and forest floor. The palate is a refreshing potpourri of fragrant red and black berry flavors that linger on with cooking spices and earthy notes. Acidity and silky tannins provide a sleek texture.
Handpicked grapes were fermented on native yeasts with 25% whole clusters. The wine was aged sur lies with monthly bâtonnage and spent 14 months in 40% new French oak.