or decades, insiders knew the Russian River Valley as home to challenging wine grapes. Challenging only in that it required a lot of intuition to know how to handle them so they could be made into dynamic wines. But when the fruit was grown with care, the results often would be “wine makers’ wines,” which meant that they’d be more appreciated by purists (such as wine makers) who understood the more classic style of wines.

By classic, we refer to wines which had higher natural acidity, and those wine makers who were loathe to use acid-reduction chemicals were pleased with the results. Indeed, to see Russian River Valley or its companion appellation, Green Valley of the Russian River Valley, on a wine label meant that the various varieties of white wines were a tad crisper, the various red wines were a tad tougher, and it wasn’t surprising to see sparkling wines from the region.

At the start, Rodney Strong, Piper-Sonoma, and Korbel made sparkling wines here; later J and Iron Horse came in to really revolutionize the craft - but in most cases, the naturally high acidity left the wines with a truly dry finish, even though a good, solid level of dosage was used to sweeten the wines’ aftertastes.

As for the table wines, Sauvignon Blanc was often slightly less “grassy,” though marked by a green/herbal and lime-y sort of aroma; the Merlots were distinctively tea-like in their basic aroma compounds; Zinfandels had as much distinctive raspberryish notes as did those from neighboring Dry Creek Valley, with a bit more “tart fruit” taste; and Cabernet Sauvignon was usually slightly more backward than those from other neighboring regions. (For all intents and purposes, there was little else here - no Syrah at all, and though some of the top Petite Sirahs came from this area, few of them were known outside the area.)

However, it was the local Pinot Noir that was beginning to intrigue everyone. As early as the 1970s, Pinot Noir showed its potential here with vibrant if low-color wines that showed a delightful “mushroom-y perfume,” along with a berry and cherry fruit profile that was long seen as one of the most identifiable of varietal aromas.

This area west of Santa Rosa in Sonoma County is rated as a cool region. Indeed, it does have cooling afternoon breezes, not to mention cold nights and fog. That last element is what defines the region, literally. The appellation boundaries were drawn based on where the fog moved during the morning hours. Afternoon winds from California’s warmer interior flow toward the Pacific Ocean. When they reach the onshore flow of cooler air, the two fronts mix, creating a magnetic fog that is drawn into the inland channels.

As it crawls over the hilltops and settles in the low-lying spots overnight, it brings with it a cooling effect that drops night-time temperatures a lot lower than the surrounding hillsides, many of which are above the fog line, and holds onto daytime temperatures (at least in the soil) longer.

So persistent is this fog that it doesn’t dissipate or recede until late morning, keeping the ground cool and reducing photosynthesis in grapevine leaves into a shorter daytime period. Thus grapes gain sugars more slowly, and many Russian River producers make wines with greater natural acidity than other regions.

And thus has it developed that Pinot Noir has become the leading wine from this region, made in a style that emphasizes berries (raspberry and strawberry mainly), with nuance being the trump card over power.

That character, which was so identifiable to local wine lovers, wine makers, and a few others in the early 1980s, wasn’t always so well known outside the area. Indeed, even a few important wine critics, early on, created some bad hair days for local wine makers who got lousy scores on their Pinot Noirs because of one “drawback”: color.

Lack of Color Colors the Wine Scores

Russian River’s greatest attribute in terms of what it provides Pinot Noir is a pretty fruit aroma and taste. But in order to get that attractive element, that elusive and seductive combination of aromas and flavors that speak of the land, one has to be willing to sacrifice some of the dark color that is rarely a part of great Burgundy or Pinot Noir anyhow. To strive for color is surely to sacrifice something, and that something usually is grace and silkiness.

Dark color was never seen as a mandatory element in Russian River Pinots until, over time, it became clear that the lack of it had a negative impact on some of the number scorers. The lack of color was seen as a detriment, and was commented on by numerous critics of these wines. In particular, the 1980 Iron Horse Pinot Noir was as stunning a wine as I had ever tasted, yet lower-than-expected scores on the wine caused winery personnel to grouse that they were being unfairly picked on.

“Since when was color a consideration in the wines of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti?” said the folks at Iron Horse. Their wine was almost pale pink in color, yet was loaded with flavors of rose petals, rich fruit underneath, and a rewarding, slightly lighter tannin finish. (In 1990, when the wine was a decade old, I had a bottle of it at the winery and it was still superb.)

This “deficiency” in color held back the Pinots of Russian River for a long while, even though the land was becoming more and more prized as a home of the wine. By the mid-1980s, numerous stellar Pinot Noirs were being made in the area, including those from Gary Farrell, Williams-Selyem, Rochioli, Joseph Swan, Davis Bynum, Dehlinger, Kistler, and De Loach.

By the latter 1980s, Gary Farrell was acknowledged as the top producer in Russian River with Williams-Selyem, the “cult” wine that all wanted. Since then Dutton Goldfield, the brainchild of passionate, brilliant Dan Goldfield, and Jess Jackson’s Hartford have entered the picture along with a handful of small, under-the-radar brands to give the area an even more stellar reputation than it previously enjoyed. Among those who work magic here are Kistler (famed for its Chardonnay), Merry Edwards, Marimar Torres, Lynmar, Sonoma Coast Vineyards, Moshin, Papapietro Perry, and about 30 more. Included is a huge, expensive project to make Pinot on a grand scale by Joseph Phelps of the Napa Valley, which may soon be called Freestone.

Abracadabra! More Color!

Few areas in California are as diverse, and few offer such a depth of flavor. But now the problem it faces appears to be a direct outgrowth of the earlier color problem. Some of the Pinots now have too much color!

There are a number of problems that I trace directly to the demand by some reviewers for darker color, in spite of the facts that (a) such wines are anathema to the classic Russian River wines of the 1970s and 1980s, and (b) a sure way to avoid Russian River character is to salt its wines with elements that have nothing to do with the soil and have more to do with wine making decisions aimed at satisfying a handful of critics who wouldn’t know Russian River character if it bit them.

Perhaps in response to the critics who said the wines are light in color (as if that criticism had any validity), some wine makers here have consciously moved to make the wines denser and more compact. The result is Pinot Noirs that have the weight and character of Syrah, and do not reflect the grape as it normally displays the soils’ character.

Some of the early efforts to make dark Pinot came about through the blending in of other grapes that gave the wines a darker color, grapes such as Alicante Bouschet and (later) Syrah. A smaller percentage of wineries actually used Mega-Purple, the red wine concentrate that, even when used sparingly, makes a wine darker.

Another technique used to make the wines that much heavier, and thus more “complex,” was to use a trellising system that allowed for ease of leaf removal late in the growing year. This gave the grapes more sun, removed much of the green, pyrazine–y aromas, and left the wine with a bit more alcohol than in the past. But the aroma often was muted.

New and retrofitted trellising systems that came into use were blamed, in part, for the rising alcohol levels we saw in many Pinot Noirs, notably from cooler climates like the Russian River.

By the late 1990s, it was clear that new clones of Pinot Noir could also be used to make weightier, darker Pinots. Older clones such as Martini, Swan, Pommard, and 115, were considered by some to be those that allowed the making of classic California Pinot Noirs. And yet these same clones were disparaged by others since they usually didn’t produce “great” Pinot Noirs, and certainly, went the criticism, they couldn’t make a “Burgundian” statement. (We will leave for another day the question of just what a Burgundian statement is and whether it’s even appropriate for California wineries to pursue it.) The sad fact is, as it was stated by wine maker Oded Shakked, most of the prized older clones are fast disappearing from the state’s vineyards. “And that’s sad,” he said, “because the character of our wines was based on those old clones.”

Send in the Clones

The search for new (and “better”) clones started about 25 years ago. By the mid-1980s, a number of California wineries began to boast of having smuggled in some great clones from Burgundy. One central coast winery owner said he had brought them in inside the lining of his jacket; another wine maker said he brought them in beneath the lining of his luggage – likely the origin of the phrase “Samsonite clones.”

Diligent work by a number of parties, including Dr. Barney Watson at Oregon State University, eventually got legal “new” clones of Pinot Noir in from France; the scion wood was carefully quarantined and made virus-free. So as new plantings were put in, in the early 1990s, and old plantings were replanted, the newer clones became a significant part of the mix. Among them were French clones using the romantic names 667 and 777.

Both clones do well at making sugar, but 777 in particular, appears to be a bit of a trickster. Bred for cold climes, this clone has the propensity to develop a lot of sugar quite rapidly late in the growing year. As such it can be relied upon to develop plenty of “oomph” for a wine. Rarely used all by itself (some wine makers say it’s a bit like Syrah!), it can add weight and concentration to a Pinot Noir.

The question is: In an era of global warming where temperatures rarely get as persistently cold, overcast, and nasty as they do in France, does this clone have any particular or necessary value in a region such as Russian River? Especially where the regional character seems to be compromised already by the choice of trellising system being used? In any case, Russian River remains one of the top places for California Pinot Noir with an identifiable character, a character that is so prized that the wines now compete with cult Napa Cabernets for fastest sell-outs despite prices that are fast approaching $75 a bottle. (No, these wines are yet to hit the century mark, and one wonders why that is, given their lofty status among the bulk of Pinot buyers who seem to dote on these wines.)

If not the most important Pinot Noir region in the New World, it is certainly the heartland of California Pinot production - a region whose fruit wine makers covet when it comes to making a statement. Whether that statement is with dark or light color remains a choice of the wine maker.

~~RRV Pinots: The 2006 Personality Profile~~

With 4,600 acres of Pinot Noir planted in the Russian River Valley, (about 19 percent of all the Pinot planted in the state), this grape variety is clearly the area’s lead variety.

Not only does no other delimited region have as much Pinot, but it also represents nearly 10 percent of all Sonoma County grapes. And it is well over a third of all the Pinot planted in Sonoma County, which also includes part of the vast Carneros, also known as a top Pinot Noir region.

Moreover, so lustrous is the name Russian River Valley for this grape that image Cabernet producers from the Napa Valley such as Phelps, Far Niente, Caymus, Araujo, and Rudd have all invested significant dollars, not to mention emotions, in this soil.

The Russian River Winegrowers Association recently staged the 4th annual Pinot Noir unveiling of the current vintage event, showing their usual 30 wines. [See Tasting Notes sidebar for details on my favorites] The invitation is sent out to all association members to participate in this event for the media and the first 30 wineries to reply may enter a single Pinot. This year’s offerings were priced from $28 to $60.

The 2006 vintage was an odd one in this region that can count on oddness as a regular occurrence. An earlier-than-normal bud break was followed by a later-than-normal harvest. Overall quality was good, but a surprise was that tonnage was up despite some significant thinning.

Ellen Mack of Russian Hill, the hostess for the Russian River tasting, is said to be very good at estimating crop loads, and in 2006 she saw too much fruit on the vines, so thinning was done. It was done again when the crop still looked huge. “And we still got more wine than we expected,” she said.

The major factor in the tasting was that despite such youth, most of the wines were excellent, with variation (as expected) in many of the vineyard-designated wines. With only 30 wines to sample, this isn’t a great test for the area, but it is clear that Russian River remains a special place for the grape.

Is Russian River an appellation that now can say it has a particular style to its Pinots? Wine maker Oded Shakked said we may have known more about Russian River when there were fewer acres and fewer wine makers. He noted we have learned more about how the grape grows, and we know that “wine makers are less afraid to be ourselves.”

As for identifying style, said Oded, “Stay tuned”.

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Check out information on the wineries of Russian River Valley at APPELLATION AMERICA.