The International Wine Review highlighted a range of new releases from Gary Farrell Winery, including the 2017 Olivet Lane Chardonnay, 2018 Russian River Selection Chardonnay, 2017 Hallberg Vineyard Pinot Noir and 2018 Russian River Selection Pinot Noir. The write up also speaks to Winemaker Theresa Heredia’s use of whole cluster fruit (usually around 30%) because she believes “that whole clusters contribute to the overall flavor complexity in the wines as well balancing acidity and softening tannins.”
Longtime admirers of both Gary Farrell Winery and Heredia, the writers note that it came as no surprise that the 2017 and 2018 vintages tasted are “very, very good.” Before delving into the tasting notes, the story offers a quick background on the 2017 growing season “of extremes” in comparison to the “almost perfect” 2018 season. It is worth reading the article to see how the differences influenced the wines and harvest in an easily digestible way!
Below, we’ve included a few of our favorite tasting notes from the story but have included the link to the full story HERE and in the embedded PDF:
The Olivet Lane single vineyard expression of Chardonnay is described as having “a lively perfume of pear, stone fruit, lemon oil, and a hint of sweet barrel spice. The attack shows stunning purity and the mouth feel is refined with optimally ripened yellow fruit and juicy acidity.” Whereas the Russian River Selection Chardonnay is “clean and fresh on the attack with a refined richness on the palate. There’s excellent concentration and length with nice lemony acidity and a lingering stone-like minerality.”
The deep ruby red colored Hallberg Pinot Noir has notes of “dark cherry interwoven with wild red berries and savory herbs” on the nose, with a “core of dense fruit on a silky palate with nuances of toasted oak.” This description also delves into much greater detail about clone sourcing and winemaking. The Russian River Selection Pinot Noir is a wonderful blend of fruit from several Russian River vineyards, and is slightly lighter in color than the Hallberg. The sumptuous nose “reveals dark cherry and berry,” while the palate invites notes of “red and black fruits and lively acidity accompanied by nuances of dark soil and spice.”
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