Kosta Browne Gap's Crown Vineyard Pinot Noir 2020
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Suckling
James -
Enthusiast
Wine
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Winemaker Notes
Bursting with fresh-picked blueberries, blackberries, baking spices, and lifted vanilla aromatics. An iconic palate with dark fruit flavors underscored by elongated velvety tannins. A finish with a wealth of energy, drive, and power.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Lovely depth of fruit and beauty to this, with crushed-strawberry, hazelnut and floral undertones. Full and deep. White pepper and cloves at the end. Drink or hold.
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Wine Enthusiast
This versatile, well-balanced and attractive wine can be enjoyed now for its elegant, moderately tannic texture and fresh red- and black-cherry flavors, or saved for a future dinner party.
Other Vintages
2021-
Suckling
James
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Dunnuck
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Robert
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Spirits
Wine &
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Dunnuck
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Enthusiast
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Dunnuck
Jeb -
Wong
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Parker
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Suckling
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Wong
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Spectator
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Guide
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Wilfred
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Founded in 1997, Kosta Browne is one of North America’s most revered wineries, recognized for making some of the world’s finest Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays. Located in Sebastopol, Sonoma County, and guided by an acclaimed team that includes renowned Winemaker Julien Howsepian, Kosta Browne makes appellation and single-vineyard wines from the most coveted cool-climate vineyards across the Russian River Valley, Sonoma Coast, Anderson Valley, Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Lucia Highlands appellations. In addition to partnering with the finest growers in California, Kosta Browne has an estate program that features 170 acres of vineyards through ownership or long-term leases that includes the Cerise Vineyard in Anderson Valley, Keefer Vineyard in the Russian River Valley, and a prized section of the Gap’s Crown Vineyard on the Sonoma Coast. Kosta Browne has earned a place on Wine Spectator’s annual list of the world’s “Top 100 Wines” seven times since 2005, including “Wine of the Year” in 2011.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
A vast appellation covering Sonoma County’s Pacific coastline, the Sonoma Coast AVA runs all the way from the Mendocino County border, south to the San Pablo Bay. The region can actually be divided into two sections—the actual coastal vineyards, marked by marine soils, cool temperatures and saline ocean breezes—and the warmer, drier vineyards further inland, which are still heavily influenced by the Pacific but not quite with same intensity.
Contained within the appellation are the much smaller Fort Ross-Seaview and Petaluma Gap AVAs.
The Sonoma Coast is highly regarded for elegant Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and, increasingly, cool-climate Syrah. The wines have high acidity, moderate alcohol, firm tannin, and balanced ripeness.