Moniker Mendocino Pinot Noir 2012
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2014-
Wine
Spectator -
Wilfred
Wong
In the late 1990s, the Thornhill family's dream was to bring their far-flung family together in one beautiful place we could call home. After years of searching, the family decided Mendocino County, California was that special place, and in 2002 they moved to La Ribera, a benchland vineyard in the heart of the Ukiah Valley.
La Ribera is a 1.5-mile long property situated on the eastern banks of the Russian River in the southern Ukiah Valley. One hundred and fifty acres are planted in vines, with the original plantings dating to the early 1950s. The river and its abundant riparian zone exert a cooling influence that tempers summer heat and helps retain acidity and freshness in the grapes.
Attention to the needs of each vine results in more concentrated and expressive fruit, and La Ribera’s diversity of soil types allows us to precisely match an array of varietals—Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel and Syrah—with their ideal soil profile. The result is high-quality wines boasting intense varietal character.
Through the wines, winemaker Greg Winter and the Thornhill family have worked to display the ultimate expression of their devotion to Mendocino County's breathtaking beauty, rich wine culture and friendly, hard-working people. They represent the best of their family and the singular appeal of one of the world's finest and most distinctive winegrowing regions.
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 large and diverse appellation within California’s North Coast AVA, Mendocino is home to several smaller sub-regions—most notably the Anderson Valley. This scenic region, with rolling hills covered in redwood forests as well as vineyards, is one of the world’s top producers of certified organically-grown grapes. Due to wide geographical and climatic variation, a vast array of wine styles can be found here.