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SPRING 2015 ALLOCATION
Welcome to the Spring 2015 Release Offering! In addition to allocating our newest releases from our Estate Vineyard, Heaven & Earth and the Ritchie Vineyard, we are very excited to launch our brand new website. We invite you to take a tour through our vineyards and learn more about what we have been up to recently here on the West Sonoma Coast by visiting www.redcarwine.com.
To view this offer and your allocation, click here. Allocations will be held until May 1st, at which point the remaining inventory will be sold on a first come, first served basis. Your limited allocation pricing includes a 10% discount, 20% on cases or more.
You no longer have to wait to receive your wines!
Shipping will begin the week of May 11th.
2013 Vintage Summary and
The Growth of our Estate Vineyard in Fort Ross – Seaview
Nature has an instinctual way of establishing balance. After the incredibly low yielding vintages from the record-breaking cold years of 2010 and 2011, both 2012 and 2013 delivered more balanced yields and wines of great finesse and character. The statewide drought in California has affected us all in several ways yet in late January 2013 we were fortunate to experience enough heavy rainfall to fill our reservoirs for the upcoming growing season. Similar to 2012, the mounting drought conditions in 2013 rendered a small berry size. This allowed us to produce highly concentrated wines with exquisite aromatics and distinctly defined vineyard character. The 2013 growing season commenced without either heat spikes or cool stretches, which facilitated an early beginning to harvest. We were able to pick at lower brix and ideal acid levels; perfect conditions for non-interventionist wine makers such as ourselves.
The wines we are proud to release in this Spring 2015 Offering were first imagined during our inaugural trip to the coastal mountains of western Sonoma County in 2003. Driving up King Ridge Road researching potential sites, we had a clear sense that this was the place where Red Car should settle, a place to call home. That morning’s sights and smells of the Pacific fog mixing with the giant redwoods as the sunshine pushed it back out to sea inspired in us a harmony with nature. We felt connected to the hum of the land and couldn’t wait to express its uniqueness in our wines. We soon purchased property on one of the coolest ridge tops in the Fort Ross – Seaview AVA and we have spent the last decade working tirelessly on this isolated and striking parcel of land that hugs the edge of the earth. It is here that we have been able to define who we are and what style of wines we wish to share with the world.
The Red Car Estate Vineyard sits at 900-1000 feet above sea level and its proximity to the ocean moderates temperatures and makes it susceptible to rain and fog during the flowering season, which keeps yields very low. The Fort Ross – Seaview Appellation is now considered one of the most exciting enclaves for world-class Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in America and we are thrilled to offer you our newest releases from this property. In addition to our highly acclaimed Estate Vineyard wines, you also have access to two other Red Car staples: the 2013 Heaven & Earth Pinot Noir and the 2013 Ritchie Vineyard Chardonnay. As always, we thank you for your support throughout this exciting journey and we are so very proud to share with you these uniquely terroir driven wines from the heralded 2012 and 2013 vintages.
Red Car Estate Vineyard in Fort Ross – Seaview
SPRING 2015 OFFERING
2013 Heaven & Earth Pinot Noir
$70 750mL/$154 Magnum
Red Car has been crafting Heaven & Earth longer than any other Pinot Noir bottling. Since the inaugural 2007 vintage, it has developed quite a following among our loyal mailing list members and is typically the first of our Pinot Noirs to completely sell out. The wine comes from the small 4.5 acre Bohemian Station Vineyard, in the heart of the Occidental region, planted to our exact specifications in 2004 using the Calera, Pommard and 828 clones. Fans of the Heaven & Earth will be more than pleased with the 2013 vintage. The blocks of Calera – characteristically a riper, smaller berry – form the backbone of the 2013 vintage. This heritage clone is highly concentrated and helps define the site-specific expression of this velvety, sumptuous wine. It epitomizes the concept of "cool sunshine" and consistently offers a perfect balance between power and acidity.
Tastes: Pomegranate, black cherry, bay leaves, cardamom tea
2013 Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir
$72 750mL/$158 Magnum
We are proud that the Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir has become our benchmark wine, offering the ideal synthesis of grace, concentration, and flavor. First planted in 2005 to multiple suitcase selections and Dijon clones of Pinot Noir, the fourth vintage from this site displays a new level of intensity that is attributed to the maturing of these vines, as well as the picture-perfect growing conditions of 2013. The well-drained Ohlson Ranch sandstone soils naturally limit vigor while the cool sunshine, moderated by the fog covered Pacific Ocean, maintains balanced ripening throughout the growing season. 2013 was the first vintage we harvested fruit from the Calera clone, which has added a new level of concentration and complexity to this highly sought after wine. This is a perfumed Pinot Noir, with mouth-watering acidity and completely integrated tannins.
Tastes: Orange rind, raspberry, earl gray tea
$55 750mL/$121 Magnum
We increasingly look for inspiration from the spiritual home of Syrah in the Northern Rhône – places like Côte-Rôtie and Cornas. These regions represent the northern-most limit where Syrah can be grown. They are cool, often cold climates, yielding wines that offer more perfume and texture than fruitiness. Our Estate Syrah is one of the coolest climate Syrahs in California and these vines struggle to ripen fruit each vintage. The 2012 Estate Vineyard Syrah has layers of aromas and flavors; it is a wine to sit with and ponder. We recommend experimenting with different food pairings with this wine – the range you will discover will astound you! This is an elegant, supple wine that will tantalize your senses without overwhelming your palate.
Tastes: Rose petals, olive tapenade, dark red stone fruit, graphite, tobacco leaves
2013 Estate Vineyard Chardonnay
$62 750mL/$136 Magnum
This is the second release of Chardonnay from our esteemed Estate property and we couldn’t be more thrilled with the 2013 vintage. Our inaugural release was such a huge success that we grafted more Chardonnay vines on this property to try to keep up with demand. Steady weather conditions in Fort Ross – Seaview in 2013 allowed us to capture the potential of this site by crafting a Chardonnay that displays bright and racy acidity, lovely floral aromatics and elegant citrus fruit. The Chardonnay was harvested from vines planted in fractured marine sandstone that weathered over millions of years from an uplifted seabed known as the Ohlson Ranch Formation. This soil offers the same viticultural advantages as the oft-referenced Goldridge series found in the lower West Sonoma Coast elevations around Sebastopol, yet differs by including less clay and more stone than sand in its composition. Our vineyard is planted to an old Wente "clone" that was selected over the course of decades by Larry Hyde specifically for the small size of its clusters and mineral flavor profile. These differences are revealed in this distinctly unique and terroir driven Chardonnay.
Tastes: Meyer lemon, hazelnut, honeysuckle
2013 Ritchie Vineyard Chardonnay
$58 750mL/$127 Magnum
Few new world Chardonnay sites rival the prestige of the famed Ritchie Vineyard. These true old Wente clone vines are among the oldest Chardonnay growing in all of Sonoma County and after four years of working with this magnificent site, we now fully understand how to bring the Red Car voice to these celebrated old vines. In 2013, we harnessed the potential of the vineyard by creating a Chardonnay with perfume, texture, minerality, and nuance. The mouthfeel and body of this wine is opulent yet racy and has received high accolades throughout the years from wine critics and Red Car fans alike. This wine can certainly be enjoyed at a young bottle age but the rewards for cellaring the 2013 Ritchie Vineyard Chardonnay are significant.
Tastes: Tangerine pith, almond oil, lilac
Allocations will be held until May 1st, at which point the remaining inventory will be sold on a first come, first served basis. Your limited allocation pricing includes a 10% discount, 20% on cases or more.