Staff Notes:
"The 2021 Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley) is dense, heady and explosive. Russian River exuberance comes through, but amplified in all of the good ways and none of the bad. Even with all of the richness and intensity, the 2021 retains good freshness as well as energy. A touch of whole clusters brightens the finish nicely. Paul Hobbs’ 2021 Pinots are sensational. I tasted the wines twice, several months apart, and was blown away both times. It’s not an understatement to say everything has changed here in recent years. In the field, the focus has shifted towards cooler sites and leaving more leaf cover, while fruit is picked a bit earlier than in the past. Vinifications are much gentler, and the oak imprint, once such a signature here, has been lessened. The result is a set of Pinots that scream with purity of fruit and the essence of site. This level of quality can’t be achieved by a single person but is very clearly the work of an entire team. Bravo.” 95 Antonio Galloni, Vonious.com, Dec 2022