1999 J Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley

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The Vineyards
J Vineyards & Winery's 1999 Estate Bottled Russian River Valley Pinot Noir is an elegant composition of hand-selected fruit from five of our distinctive Pinot Noir vineyards sprinkled throughout the appellation. As with the assemblage technique he uses in sparkling wine, Winemaker Oded Shakked tasted and blended each lot for flavor and complexity.

Each of J's vineyards contribute unique characteristics: opulence from the Robert Thomas Vineyard adjacent to the Russian River; bright red berries from Shirley's Vineyard nestled against Mark West Creek; elegance from Nick & Nonny's Vineyard; a touch of earthiness from the Teardrop Vineyard; and a brush stroke of rich color and structural concentration from Nicole's hillside clos.

Processing
The winemaking team first cold-soaked a portion of the fruit, then fermented it in a combination of open-top and closed-top fermenters.

Ageing
Malolactic fermentation occurred in oak tanks and oak barrels. For barrel ageing, the wine was placed in 30% new French oak for ten months. A loose filtration process with no fining was employed before bottling.

Tasting Notes
This Estate Pinot Noir as a very appealing, fruit driven style. Aromas are lively and elegant with spiced cherry and berry fruit, integrating with vanilla, butterscotch, herbal, licorice and smoke undertones. Loaded with intense, sweet-toned cherry, currant and stone fruit flavors then touched with light spice and earth tones, this wine rounds out with an opulent, flavorful finish.

Harvest: September 16 - October 2, 1999

Harvest Analysis: 24.4° Brix

Final Analysis: Alcohol 14.2% by volume

Bottling Date: July 2000

13,500 cases produced