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The January 2024 Auction: Part 2
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Lot 2060
Estimate: $55
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Collection name
Reviews
96WA
"The 2016 Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard is one of the more exotic wines in the range, bursting with complex aromas of strawberries, plums, potpourri, rich spice and a subtle bass note of grilled meat. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, layered and beautifully complete, simultaneously ample and tense, rich but weightless. This Pinot Noir's silky structure and concentration reflect yields so low that ten vines are typically required to produce one bottle. Four or five years of patience will be required and more will be rewarded. There are two important pieces of news from Rhys Vineyards. The first is that Kevin Harvey's new venture with Italian grape varieties, Aeris, is about to debut, and readers are directed to my notes under that name for more information. The second is that beginning with the 2016 vintage, appellation wines will no longer be produced under the Rhys Vineyards label, which henceforth will be reserved for vineyard-designate wines. Instead, Harvey's Alesia label, formerly used for wines from purchased fruit, is being re-introduced as a home for appellation winesâeven though these wines will now be produced entirely from estate-grown fruit. At the risk of creating confusion, the Alesia wines are reviewed here under Rhys Vineyards; they will still, of course, be offered for sale via the Rhys Vineyards mailing list. Beyond these two innovations, the story of incremental progress every year (with which followers of the Rhys wines will by now be familiar) remains the same. High-density estate vineyards and meticulous farming are the rule. Pinot Noir sees classical vinification in one-ton tanks (frequently incorporating significant proportions of whole clusters), followed by maturation in François FrĂšres barrels (produced from the winery's own four-year seasoned oak staves). Chardonnay ferments in barrels and matures on the lees before racking to tank several months before bottlingâa regimen that's common in contemporary Burgundy. All the Rhys wines start life quite tight-knit and firmly structured, though my sense is that the Pinot Noir vintages from this decade are more structurally refined than those from the last. They do seem to open up and become expressive more rapidly than their qualitative equivalents from the CĂŽte d'Or, but five or six years of cellaring is certainly recommended, even required. Happily, the Rhys website features a regularly updated vintage chart for anyone looking for advice on what is currently showing well. From my own cellar, the 2012 vineyard-designate Pinot Noirs are performing very well. I also encourage readers not to miss the Chardonnays, which are without doubt among the best being produced in North America."
Region
Red
Country
Score
"The 2016 Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard is one of the more exotic wines in the range, bursting with complex aromas of strawberries, plums, potpourri, rich spice and a subtle bass note of grilled meat. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, layered and beautifully complete, simultaneously ample and tense, rich but weightless. This Pinot Noir's silky structure and concentration reflect yields so low that ten vines are typically required to produce one bottle. Four or five years of patience will be required and more will be rewarded. There are two important pieces of news from Rhys Vineyards. The first is that Kevin Harvey's new venture with Italian grape varieties, Aeris, is about to debut, and readers are directed to my notes under that name for more information. The second is that beginning with the 2016 vintage, appellation wines will no longer be produced under the Rhys Vineyards label, which henceforth will be reserved for vineyard-designate wines. Instead, Harvey's Alesia label, formerly used for wines from purchased fruit, is being re-introduced as a home for appellation winesâeven though these wines will now be produced entirely from estate-grown fruit. At the risk of creating confusion, the Alesia wines are reviewed here under Rhys Vineyards; they will still, of course, be offered for sale via the Rhys Vineyards mailing list. Beyond these two innovations, the story of incremental progress every year (with which followers of the Rhys wines will by now be familiar) remains the same. High-density estate vineyards and meticulous farming are the rule. Pinot Noir sees classical vinification in one-ton tanks (frequently incorporating significant proportions of whole clusters), followed by maturation in François FrĂšres barrels (produced from the winery's own four-year seasoned oak staves). Chardonnay ferments in barrels and matures on the lees before racking to tank several months before bottlingâa regimen that's common in contemporary Burgundy. All the Rhys wines start life quite tight-knit and firmly structured, though my sense is that the Pinot Noir vintages from this decade are more structurally refined than those from the last. They do seem to open up and become expressive more rapidly than their qualitative equivalents from the CĂŽte d'Or, but five or six years of cellaring is certainly recommended, even required. Happily, the Rhys website features a regularly updated vintage chart for anyone looking for advice on what is currently showing well. From my own cellar, the 2012 vineyard-designate Pinot Noirs are performing very well. I also encourage readers not to miss the Chardonnays, which are without doubt among the best being produced in North America."
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The fourth-largest wine producer in the world, led by California. American fine wine is defined by ripe, expressive fruit and a spirit of innovation, with Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon among the most sought-after wines globally.
A thin-skinned, terroir-sensitive red producing perfumed, silky and elegant wines of red-berry fruit and earthy complexity. It reaches its apogee in Burgundy.