Signaterra Pinot Noir

rrI’ve written before about Benziger Winery in northern California’s  Sonoma Valley. The Benzigers have been industry leaders in sustainable, organic and bio-dynamic farming, and they’ve used those grapes to produce literally dozens of wines. Today I’m writing about one of their upper tiers, the Signaterra single-vineyard line, which uses fruit from premium vineyard sites across California.

The first wine I tasted is Signaterra Bella Luna Vineyard Pinot Noir 2009. Bella Luna is a tiny parcel in the Russian River appellation of Sonoma County, which is much cooler and much more suited to Pinot Noir than the land the Benzigers own in Sonoma Valley.

Just about any Pinot lover will tell you that Russian River fruit has a distinct footprint (or nose- and palate-print). Benziger’s Signaterra Pinot is true to form. The nose is very aromatic, with pretty black cheery and wild strawberry notes and a hint, no, make that lots of smoke.

The palate is also classic Pinot, with bright fruit that’s flavorful but not too lush. I tasted the black cherry and strawberry I’d expected, with an herbal/toasty background. The body was bang-on — delicate and velvety, with some minerality on the backside. The only thing that seemed a little shy was the finish, but this wine may take a few hours to develop and we finished it off in as much time as it takes to eat a tray of smoked salmon and capers.

 

 

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