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2006 HIRSCH VINEYARDS: Conventional wisdom has it that quality is incompatible with quantity. Pshaw! Try this rich, profound, and expressive product of the most fruitful vintage in nine years. (See the blending and clonal charts for details of provenance and complexity.) There is a depth to this wine that suggests the mystery touched upon by all true to site wines.
Though 2296 cases in total were made, it is important to note that the largest of the 21 fermentation lots totaled only eight tons. (And it had to be fermented in two tanks since our largest will hold only 6.5 tons.) Eight tons yielded us 376 cases in 2006. The wines were not blended until the week before bottling. The Hirsch is a blend of 98% estate fruit made in very small lots.
Tasting notes: Color of dark, velvet brocade. Upon opening, deep earth, loam aromas emerge against a background of bergamot, black tea, bing cherry, and oak. The big, broad mouth feel harbors flavors of umi plums and rich cherries. It is full and plush. Supported by healthy tannins, its nice acid balance is fully present through to the long, persistent finish. With air, pronounced pinot notes emerge: leather, tobacco, autumnal earth. The mid-palate broadens and the tannins integrate.
2006 HIRSCH VINEYARDS - 2296 cases bottled March 3-5, 2008; alcohol: 14.55%; pH: 3.77
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2006 M: Our new pinot cuvee from 95% Hirsch fruit grown in thirty-one vineyard blocks is a really M-arvelous and M-ellifluous expression of our site. What sets it apart from its two siblings is the distribution of clones and oak: see the charts. Thus, the M offers a unique perspective of the site for the 2006 vintage, revealing the site’s inherent complexity and its mysterious property that produces myriad aspects overlying a single expression: the essence of a valid pinot noir terroir.
Tasting notes: At once brooding and delicate, dark fruit aromas are followed by pleasing spice and smoke. On the palate the wine is more lithe and balanced than the nose suggests with bright plum and berry compote flavors enlivened by the natural acid balance. This leads to floral notes and black tea on the long persistent finish.
2006 M-448 cases bottled 8/20/07; alcohol: 14.9%
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2006 BOHAN DILLON: Produced for the first time since 2003, this pinot noir expresses the complexity of the site. It is a blend of seventeen fermentation lots containing the fruit of thirty-four discreet farming blocks. All five of the pinot noir clones farmed here are fully represented. Ninety-seven percent of the fruit is estate; the balance is from the adjoining Hellenthal ranch. Thirty per cent is from the older fields; the balance from our newer plantings. It is important to note that this wine is made in exactly the same way as the Hirsch and from the same fruit. In other words, it is a true ‘village’ wine and represents exceptional value.
Tasting notes: Ruby-garnet colored. Exotic spice box aromas give way to Seville orange and bergamot. With air, subtle earth and leather notes emerge. On the palate, flavors of plum, tea, and tobacco vie for attention, braced by an inherent minerality that marks this as a typical expression of the site. A complete wine made with all the exacting care and site-specific attention to detail we bring to all our wines.
2006 BOHAN DILLON - 2568 cases bottled 8/20/07; alcohol: 14.6%
Mark Doherty, Winemaker
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2006 HIRSCH CHARDONNAY: Tasting notes: Straw colored with a green tinge. Fresh hay/biscuit top note followed by floral and toasty oak aromas. Bright and lively on the palate, in turn showing white stone fruit and an elegant minerality typical of the site.
While quite rich in structure, the acid balance keeps this wine where it belongs: on the table with a wide variety of foods from fresh-shucked oysters to richer seafood to pork loin and veal. Bottled unfined and unfiltered.
2006 HIRSCH CHARDONNAY - 360 cases bottled 8/21/07; alcohol: 15.1%
Mark Doherty, Winemaker
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