Cleo Pahlmeyer's Pinot Passion Project Has Become the Main Attraction
On the West Sonoma Coast frontier, Wayfarer's fruit-driven Pinot Noirs stand out
On the West Sonoma Coast frontier, Wayfarer's fruit-driven Pinot Noirs stand out
On the West Sonoma Coast frontier, Wayfarer's fruit-driven Pinot Noirs stand out
These are wines of amazing grace without sacrificing structure and layers.
Vinous Live! with Antonio Galloni and Cleo Pahlmeyer
In the glass, the wine pours a ripe red/ruby color and delivers notes of bright red cherries, cranberry, violets, and a light minty lift with hints of sage and anise. Medium-bodied, it has a highly refined, chalky texture, fine, supple tannins, and a clean, mineral-noted finish. Drink it over the next 15 years.
From the Mt. Eden and Dijon 777 clones, the 2021 Pinot Noir Mother Rock is lifted with mineral aromas of flinty gravel, toasted pine, wild cherry, and fresh flowers. Medium to full-bodied, it has more tension on the palate, which is balanced with power that drives forward its notes of black raspberry, fresh herbs, and a touch of iron richness. It’s long on the palate and will need a few years in bottle. Drink 2025-2040.
The 2019 Pinot Noir Mother Rock comes from Mt. Eden and 777 clone fruit. It has a medium ruby-purple color and takes time to unfold to form scents of graphite and dashi, with plush, ripe red and blackberry fruit and notes of dried lavender and star anise. The palate is spectacular, satiny in texture and fanning out to dark, spicy flavors with a fresh burst of acidity and a very long, layered finish. It deserves another 2-3 years in bottle.
"The 2018 Pinot Noir Mother Rock is dense, heady and explosive, with tremendous concentration, unctuous sweetness and exceptional balance. Ripe red/purplish berry fruit, lavender, cloves and leather infuse the 2018 with tremendous character. In this range, the Mother Rock stands out for its bright red berry fruit and chalky, white pepper overtones that confer freshness. This is such a gorgeous, arrestingly beautiful wine. I loved it."
"A mix of clones 37 and 777 from shallower, rocky soils, the 2017 Pinot Noir Mother Rock was mostly destemmed and brought up all in 50-60% new French oak. Not harvested until October 2, it offers a more ruby color as well as a Burgundian profile in its darker cherry, earth, spice, and underbrush aromas and flavors. More medium-bodied, silky and elegant, it's lightly textured, has moderate tannins, beautiful balance, and a clean finish. It shines for its incredible purity and elegance more than power and richness, and should evolve beautifully for over a decade."
“With a deep, incredibly floral character as well as classic jammy raspberries, toasted bread, and spice aromatics, this beauty is more full-bodied and powerful, with building tannin, obvious oak, and a great finish. Young and unevolved, hide bottle for at least 2-3 years.”
Youthfully flippant, this block of the Wayfarer Vineyard is sitting largely in sandstone, where the grapes pull remarkably revealing minerality from the soil. Racy and flinty, this medium-bodied, structured and flirty wine dances in a generosity of rich red fruit, raspberry mostly, seasoned in clove and cardamom that’s fresh and incredibly seductive. Still, it’ll age; drink now through 2024.
Medium to deep ruby-purple, the 2013 Pinot Noir Mother Rock (made from Mt. Eden and 777 clones) has a gorgeous, spicy nose of Chinese five spice, raspberry coulis, red currant jelly and dried rose petals with a touch of smoked meat. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is opulent and seductive, with velvety tannins and lovely, understated freshness, finishing with lingering perfumed notes.
Brooding in dark cherry and earthy spice, this fully figured wine offers well-integrated oak. With a savory and powerful profile, it has a forceful grip on the palate accented by black tea, truffle and juicy vibrancy. From a mix of clones (37 and Dijon 777), some fermented whole-cluster, this is a structured wine from a meticulously farmed coastal site.