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J Vineyards and Winery
2016 Foggy Bend Vineyard Pinot Noir Russian River Valley

Overview
Since 1986, J Vineyards and Winery has developed a reputation as one of California's top sparkling and varietal wine producers. J has come to be known for its celebrated estate vineyards, contemporary winery, and world-class hospitality. Winemaker Nicole Hitchcock showcases her expertise and the diversity of California winegrowing regions through a portfolio of high-quality varietal and sparkling wines of distinction.

Tasting Notes
From the first swirl, our Foggy Bend Vineyard Pinot Noir shows off something special. The wine begins with alluring aromatics of plum, blackberry, thyme, and freshly unearthed black truffle. On the complex, food-friendly palate, inviting notes of dark cherry, pomegranate juice, and tart blueberry blend seamlessly with herbal and earthy hints of fennel, pine, cinnamon stick, and nutmeg. Showing well at release, the wine's crisp acidity will allow it to age gracefully over the next several years. Pair this wine with grilled salmon drizzled with oven-roasted tomato sauce or pork chops topped with black olive tapenade and fennel couscous pilaf. For a cheese pairing, try a nettle-wrapped soft cheese with plum compote.

Vintage Comments
The grapes for this Pinot Noir were sourced from the Foggy Bend Vineyard, found in the coolest reaches of Westside Road southwest of Healdsburg. In 2016, the Russian River Valley growing season was warm and dry. Plenty of winter rains and a warm spring brought on early budbreak and a fast-paced summer growing season. Another early harvest, 2016 finished a full ten days earlier than average. Consistent warm temperatures through September rewarded us with incredible intensity and depth of flavor. These conditions and constant coastal breezes provided an ideal environment to produce concentrated fruit flavors and crisp acidity.

Winemaking
Whole clusters were hand-harvested, hand-sorted, de-stemmed, and gravity-fed into small, 2- to 10-ton open-top vessels. Following a five-day cold soak, the must fermented for about ten days. The wine was drained by gravity into French oak barrels to undergo malolactic fermentation for the next six weeks, with barrels stirred every two weeks to enhance mouthfeel. Aging for 14 months in our cool cellars, adding nuanced spice and fresh toast aromatics to complement the fruit characteristics of the wine.

Wine Details
Estate Vineyard: Foggy Bend Vineyard
Clones: 115, 667, 2A, and Rochioli
Soils: Zamora, fine silty clay loam
Aging: 14 months in French oak barrels (36% new)
Harvest Dates: September 12-29, 2016
Alcohol: 14.40%
Titratable Acid: 0.51 g/100ml
pH: 3.74
[Information provided by Gallo]