2017 Wendling Vineyard Pinot Noir
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Tasting notes
Whenever I see the Littorai Wendling Pinot Noir I order it. Ted Lemon makes a number of fabulous Pinots and Chardonnays, but the Wendling Pinot is one of his very finest. It emerges from a relatively young site in Anderson Valley planted with a variety of clones from places I probably should not mention. Immediately explosive in its bouquet, the 2017 is a total showstopper. I loved it from barrel and then as a recently bottled wine, but tonight it is even better than I remember from the past. Rich, layered and hauntingly beautiful, the 2017 is simply magnificent. What a wine! In my view the potential for Pinot Noir in Anderson Valley has barely been scratched, but that is a subject for another day.
Critic scores
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Antonio Galloni, Vinous
James Suckling
More reviews and scores
One of the highlights in this range, the 2017 Pinot Noir Wendling Vineyard Block E is an outrageously beautiful, vivid wine. Deep, unctuous and resonant in the glass, the 2017 possesses tremendous richness and intensity. Inky dark fruit, lavender, spice, menthol, licorice and mocha infuse the 2017 with character and personality. Even with all of its fruit intensity, the 2017 has more than enough structure to develop in bottle for years to come.
Striking earthy, foresty freshness with fresh-mushroom and spiced-blueberry aromas, too. Complex pinot here. The palate has a very succulent feel with supple, vibrant red to dark cherries, blueberries and flashes of plums. There’s a wealth of fuller tannin that wraps the fruit nicely. Drink in the next six years.
This comes from a block of younger vines planted in 2009. "I developed the property with the owners, and in exchange for my soil work, they let me pick my block." Pale to medium ruby, the 2017 Pinot Noir Wendling Vineyard Block E has a very concentrated nose of warm crushed blackberries and black cherries, dried rose petal, saline, smoke, sweet strawberry and raspberry preserves with notions of amaro, dusty earth and old leather. The palate is light to medium-bodied and youthfully coiled with a firm frame of lightly chalky tannins and good freshness, finishing long on a citrus peel note.
About the producer
Littorai stands as one of California’s most quietly influential estates, defined by organic and biodynamic farming, site transparency, and a restrained, Burgundian sensibility.