February 25, 2022

WILLIAMS SELYEM “Eastside Road Neighbors” Pinot Noir 2019

(Russian River Valley, CA) $88

When Pinot Noir is supple and silky, the texture is just achingly hedonistic. I, for one, can’t stop drinking Pinots like that. They go straight to the cravings center of your mind. Williams Selyem has been making highly textural, elegant Pinots for more than two decades. Many are single-vineyard wines which are hard to get your hands on. But their “Eastside Road Neighbors” is available and it’s one of our favorites. The refined waves of flavor—red berries, rose petals, Asian spices, cigar box, warm earth—are off-the-charts delicious. Curiously, all of the Williams Selyem Pinots are made in repurposed dairy tanks (Sonoma has always been known for its dairies), which are built to be immaculately clean. Laid on their sides, the tanks provide a high ratio of skin to juice. And that results in a wonderful richness of pure fruit flavor. Don’t miss this. (13.7% abv)

94 points KM

Available at Gary's Wine and Marketplace

What is the most visited winery in the U.S.?

A. Kendall Jackson, Sonoma, CA

B. Biltmore Winery, Ashville NC

C. Sutter Home Winery, Napa Valley, CA

D. Brotherhood Winery, Hudson Valley, NY

The Biltmore Winery is located in the Blue Ridge Mountains on the estate of George Vanderbilt, grandson of famed industrialist and philanthropist Cornelius Vanderbilt. Officially opened to Vanderbilt’s friends and family on Christmas Day, 1895, the Biltmore Estate was donated to the public by his daughter in 1930. Today, approximately 1.5 million visitors come to the estate annually to walk the more than four acres of floor space, including 35 bedrooms, 43 bathrooms, and 65 fireplaces. The estate reports that slightly fewer than half of those visitors make it over to the winery and tasting room, located in the original 1900 dairy barn. Winemaker Sharon Fenchak notes, ”Since we’re in the Southeast, sometimes we are the first winery people ever visit.” Vanderbilt’s grandson, William A.V. Cecil, planted vineyards with French-American hybrid grapes on the estate in the early 1970s, and opened the winery in 1985. Today, wines are produced from 150 acres of chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and petit manseng from the property as well as grapes sourced from the West Coast.

Kabinett

A level of ripeness indicating that the wine was not completely ripe according to the traditional German system. Light and fresh, kabinett wines (especially rieslings) are drunk by Germans as every-night wines. The dependable presence… Continue reading

WILLIAMS SELYEM “Eastside Road Neighbors” Pinot Noir 2019

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