Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Reviews

Firm tannins and a healthy stamp of toasted oak give this full-bodied wine an almost chewy texture. Cedar, wood smoke and cranberry flavors are complex and deep.

(£26.99) 14% alcohol. Juicy with sweet cherries and plums, showing nice balance with sweet fruit and a fine-grained finish. 89/100

The winery is making a strong turnaround since becoming part of Jean-Charles Boisset’s stable, and veteran winemaker Brian Maloney has access to choice vineyards.

An excellent choice for a regular, go-to Pinot, this is intense, with spicy floral scents and loamy earth, watermelon and dried berry notes that firm on the finish. Drink now through 2021. 5,000 cases made. —J.L.

Classic ruby. A ripe and restrained nose of red berries and subtle spice notes leads to energetic and well-detailed middle weight flavors that culminate in a dusty, clean and ever-so-mildly austere finish. There is a trace of warmth to the acceptably complex and agreeably persistent finale that is slightly attenuated.

Fresh and snappy, displaying moderate weight and deptgh, with zesty strawberry and watermelon flavors, followed by a light finish.

A fresh and very pretty, indeed perfumed nose of ripe red pinot fruit give way to round, supple and easy to like flavors that culminate in a somber but complex and reasonably persistent finish. This forward effort is already drinking well.

With a thick coating of caramelized oak and masses of ripe, jammy fruit, this Pinot tastes sweet. But it's complex in its own way, with a pleasant scour of acidity. Drink now with mushroom risotto, lamb chops or, for the best of all worlds, both. -S.H.