Wine & Spirits - Winter 2016 - 44

TOP 100 WINERIES 2016

E STATE

Hirsch

Iron Horse

David Hirsch

Founded: 1980 (vineyard),
2002 (winery)
Winemaker: Anthony Filiberti
Viticulturists: David Hirsch and
Everardo Robledo
Owner: David Hirsch
Acres owned: 72 planted
Annual production: 6,000 cases
Estate grown: 100%
Location: Cazadero, CA
Website: hirschvineyards.com

One of the earliest plantings on the far Sonoma coast, the Hirsch vineyard
grows pinot noir with firm ridge-top structure and the alluring foresty scent of
fog-cooled fruit.
Cool Warmth: David Hirsch, who began planting his ridge-top vineyard in 1980, points out one factor that distinguishes many of the
world's best vineyard sites: They're all relatively warm spots in cool
places (think the sun-warmed south-facing grand cru vineyards in
Chablis, or the south-facing sites along the twists and turns of the
Mosel). In the case of Hirsch, cool, often fog-laden air coming off the
nearby Pacific Ocean meets the warm inland air mass seeping over
the inland hills, creating a dynamic climate that, along with the vineyard's seismically fractured geography, makes for an almost impossibly complex vineyard site.
Cru, Reserve, Village: Anthony Filiberti, formerly of Knez, joined
Hirsch this year when Ross Cobb left to devote himself to his own
label. The wines we tasted this year were all made by Cobb, who
arrived in 2010 and pushed to emphasize the distinction between the
more coastal western ridge and the slightly warmer eastern ridge of
the property. The 2013 East Ridge is particularly impressive, bright
and harmonious, with the bursting fruit and lifted fragrance of the
best coastal pinot noir. The 2013 Reserve, mostly from
the older blocks on the estate, is similarly feathery, the
most delicate Reserve we've tasted. Then there's the San
Andreas, the estate's flagship wine. The 2012 is firm, long
and intense, with a distinctive and utterly appetizing scent
that falls somewhere between tilled soil and roses. Think
of it as an overperforming "village" wine, a California
analogue to that basic Chambolle that will blow you
away after ten years in the cellar.
Kudos for Bohan: If you can't afford Hirsch's more rarified wines, check out the Bohan-Dillon. It comes from
younger blocks on the estate, and as the vines have
matured, so has the wine. The 2014 is the first Bohan
to fully capture the genius of the estate-it's crisp and
lifted, with the same firm backbone and perfume that
makes the other Hirsch wines sing. -L.S.

TOP-SCORING WINES

E STATE

David Munksgard

Founded: 1979
Winemaker: David Munksgard
Viticulturist: Laurence Sterling
Owners: Audrey, Barry, Joy and
Laurence Sterling
Acres owned: 160
Annual production: 25,000 cases
Estate grown: 100%
Location: Sebastopol, CA
Website: ironhorsevineyards.com

"I love that this is a remnant of an ancient sea bed that, five million years ago,
tipped over and drained into the ocean," says Joy Sterling of her family's estate
in Sonoma's Green Valley. These days, those ancient sediments grow some of
California's finest sparkling wines.
Sonoma Pastoral: If you're standing in the rolling hills of the Iron
Horse estate on a summer morning, you'll often see firsthand what
makes this place unique: In the distance, the clouds will clear over
most of the Russian River Valley while Green Valley, Russian River's
cool western pocket, remains socked in for another hour. It's a tranquil, temperate place, and everything seems to grow here: pears, Gravenstein apples, palm trees, some of the sweetest cherry tomatoes
you'll ever taste and, most importantly for Iron Horse, rows of chardonnay and pinot noir planted on pale, sandy Goldridge soil.
A Cool 2010: Iron Horse has long focused on bubbles, shedding its
own distinctive light on this corner of Sonoma (they also make still
pinot noir and chardonnay). Each sparkling wine is vintage dated,
each grown exclusively on the estate. This year, the 2010 Classic Vintage Brut-one of their less expensive, widely available sparklers-
showed particularly well. The vintage was mostly cool, until a blistering heat wave hit in late August. The estate avoided the
cooked fruit flavors that marred some of the wines from
warmer climates, and the wine shows the cooler side of the
vintage in its delicacy, its fine bubbles gliding effortlessly
through a fresh red raspberry flavor and scents of chamomile and toast.
Good Intentions: While most of Iron Horse's sparkling
wines are pinot noir dominant, they do make one blanc
de blancs. Since 2005, it's been called Ocean Reserve-
"The ocean is the engine of our microclimate,"
explains Joy Sterling-and they donate four dollars
from the sale of each bottle to National Geographic's
Ocean Initiative, which establishes marine protected
areas and supports sustainable fishing practices. The
2010 is fantastic-a floral sparkler with a salty marine
savor and the sort of firm, harmonious grace that's not
often achieved outside of Champagne. -L.S.

TOP-SCORING WINES

95 '12 Sonoma Coast San Andreas Fault Pinot Noir $60 (6/16)

93 '10 Green Valley of Russian River Vly. Classic Brut $42 (12/15)

94 '13 Sonoma Coast East Ridge Pinot Noir $85 (8/16)

93 '10 Green Vly. RRV Ocean Reserve Blanc de Blancs $50 (12/15)

93 '14 Sonoma Coast The Bohan-Dillon Pinot Noir $38 (8/16)

91 '00 Green Valley of Russian River Valley Brut LD $110 (12/15)

WINE & SPIRITS

BUYING GUIDE 2017

http://www.ironhorsevineyards.com http://www.hirschvineyards.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - Winter 2016