Description
Drew Estate, “Morning Dew Ranch” Pinot Noir
Want to know why Drew’s Anderson Valley Pinot Noir is worth $70? For starters, La Tâche and Williams Selyem are closely linked to today’s scintillating bottle, so that’s a good start. But I wanted to test its value in a comparative tasting, and it transcended expectations by running circles around several $70-$100 Premier Crus. Few producers outside of Burgundy are capable of capturing that level of charm and fascination in Pinot Noir—Drew is on that shortlist.
Although not yet a household name, Jason Drew is among the most gifted winemakers in California: He has proven to be a blue-chip source for some of the finest site-transparent wines in Mendocino’s forested, high-elevation terroir. Each wine I’ve tasted pushes the limits of precision and finesse, and today’s comes from the highly celebrated “Morning Dew Ranch” vineyard, planted by late legend Burt Williams of Willams-Selyem. Even better is the specific type of Pinot Noir clone in today’s bottle. Wine geeks have buzzed about “828” and its origins for quite some time. This Pinot clone, said to have originated from DRC’s cult-famous “La Tâche” ($9,000+), was allegedly smuggled overseas many decades ago. According to Prince of Pinot, the truth has never been confirmed “in fear of violating French IP laws.” True or not, one thing is evident: Today’s Pinot is a world-class wine with polish, perfume, and an extraordinary sense of luxury that’s on par with my favorite Chambolle-Musigny cuvées. Given its extremely limited production, we are only able to offer six bottles per person until our stock runs dry.
By the time Jason started Drew Family Wines in 2000, he had already racked up a stellar resumé, with stints at legendary Napa estates like Joseph Phelps and Corison. In his years of experience at a multitude of northern and central California benchmarks, though, he found that nuance and refreshment were often overlooked in favor of power and ripeness. He and his wife, Molly, established Drew Family Wines to change that, focusing on cooler sites and more hands-off winemaking. They were ahead of the curve: a decade later, the push for lower-alcohol, higher-energy California wines would become a full-blown revolution. Now the market is flooded with producers working in this vein, but Drew remains at the absolute top of the game.
Part of that success can be attributed to location. The Drews set up shop high in the Mendocino Ridge, which is perched above the fog line, just 3.3 miles from the Pacific Ocean. Here you’ll find them tending an apple and truffle orchard alongside eight acres of estate vines, although they do also source fruit from high-quality sites, like “Morning Dew Ranch.” Planted by Burt Williams just before the new millennium, this southwest-facing vineyard reaches as high as 800 feet and experiences cool, breezy days with foggy mornings.
Drew selected two Pinot parcels, planted with the 828 “Lâ Tache” and Rochioli clones, and harvested them by hand. In their cellar, grapes were 75% de-stemmed and a natural fermentation occurred in stainless steel tanks. Afterward, the resulting wine was transferred into French barrels, 20% new, and the wine was racked twice via gravity before an unfined/unfiltered bottling.
If you’ve made it this far, that probably means you’re willing to spend $70 on an Anderson Valley Pinot Noir. You won’t have a single regret. This splashes into a large Burgundy stem with a vibrant ruby core and flashes of bright purple. Pristine, vividly gorgeous aromas unfurl in waves, starting with fresh crushed raspberry, Damson plum, wild huckleberry, black cherry, and spiced plum. With air, subtler notes of black tea, damp sage, sweet baking spices, and blood orange peel emerge. The palate is medium-bodied and soft as velvet, delivering layer after layer of deep, ripe, spice-tinged berry fruit alongside a soft yet persistent mineral core. Enjoy one or two now, certainly, but be sure to save any others for birthdays 5-8. Your patience will be handsomely rewarded. Cheers!
