Tasting Notes

Release Date: Fall 2020

The 2017 growing season was beautiful with ample rain in the winter and just-right temperatures in the spring and summer. The harvest commenced at the very end of August and concluded at the beginning of September, which is early when you look back at 40 years of harvest starts, but now it is the norm.

We employ about 30% whole cluster fermentation. These grapes are incorporated into the open-top fermentors along with the destemmed berries. The result is a wine with more energy and nuance and, with age, develops the magic of Pinot Noir’s complexity. The whole cluster additions add weight and intensity, which is the intention.

Enticing wild strawberries and plum aromas are full bore. The mouthfeel is linear in intensity with fine tension on the palate with flavors of blackberry, pastille, and lovely plum sorbet.

Given our history, expect bottle development for twenty years, and a drinking plateau thereafter.

Production

999

Tech Notes

Yield: 1.5 tons per acre

Harvest: August 29th- September 3rd

Numbers @ Harvest: 24.0° Brix, 3.5 pH, 7.5 grams acidity

Barrel Regimen: French Burgundy 50% new, 50% 1 year; native ferments

Bottling: August 2018, no fining or filtration

Alcohol: 14%

Reviews

95 points Robert Parker Jr's The Wine Advocate - February 2021, Week 1

The 2017 Pinot Noir Estate offers savory, layered aromas of earth and laurel, charcuterie and orange peel, with amaro-laced red and black berries. The palate is grainy and fresh, with a kaleidoscope of spices and a very long finish. It’s incredibly appealing now but will benefit from a long decant. —E. B

93 points Antonio Galloni presents Vinous - September 9, 2020

The 2017 Pinot Noir is a very pretty, open-knit wine. Crushed rose petal, sweet red berry, mint, cedar and sweet pipe tobacco give the 2017 striking aromatic presence. In 2017, the Mount Eden Pinot is a decidedly forward, silky wine that looks like it will offer its best drinking sooner rather than later. The 2017 was done with 33% whole clusters and saw 50% new barrels.

92 points Wine Enthusiast Magazine - November 2020

There’s intense pine and redwood spice to the nose and palate of this bottling, which begins with aromas of cooked cranberry, vanilla and nutmeg. There’s a splash of acid on the tip of the sip, where smoked strawberry and grilled berry flavors meet with oregano and singed oak smoke. —M.K.

90 points Wine Spectator - November 30, 2020

Notes of cedar and wild spice accent the ripe, well-knit red berry, boysenberry and dark plum flavors. Coffeeberry accents chime in on the broad and juicy finish. Drink now through 2024. –KM

18 points JaniceRobinson.com - January 18, 2021

18 (about 93-95 on the 100-pt. scale)

Grown at 2,000 ft (610 m) elevation on the original Mount Eden estate. Roughly 1,150 cases made.

Lovely scents of raspberry and chopped green herbs. Faint tannins wrap around a core of pretty raspberry fruit tinged with raspberry-leaf and tomato-leaf notes. Clear signatures of whole-cluster fermentation with the herbal notes that linger into the finish. Beautifully balanced and juicy. Confidently compelling. (AY)