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Russian River Valley
Chardonnay
Vineyard Notes
2019 may stand out as one of the more exceptional vintages in recent memory. Cooler temperatures and stable weather for most of the growing season allowed for slow maturation of flavors without any heat events spiking sugar accumulation in the berries. Although 2019 also saw the devastating Kincade fire in Sonoma County, Pinot Noir and most Chardonnays in the county were harvested by then, so the smoke did not affect the grapes. Overall, look for wines with slightly lower alcohol, higher but integrated acids, and a depth of flavor that you would probably have to go back several vintages to find an equal.
Tasting Notes
“Lots of pear, honeyed apple, spice, and brioche notes emerge from the 2019 Chardonnay Russian River Valley, a layered, medium to full-bodied Chardonnay offering integrated, moderate acidity, plenty of texture, and a good finish. It lacks that extra something found in the others, but it’s certainly a beautiful, rich, textured, yet still light on its feet Chardonnay with loads to love.”
– 93pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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Sonoma Coast
Chardonnay
Vineyard Notes
2019 may stand out as one of the more exceptional vintages in recent memory. Cooler temperatures and stable weather for most of the growing season allowed for slow maturation of flavors without any heat events spiking sugar accumulation in the berries. Although 2019 also saw the devastating Kincade fire in Sonoma County, Pinot Noir and most Chardonnays in the county were harvested by then, so the smoke did not affect the grapes. Overall, look for wines with slightly lower alcohol, higher but integrated acids, and a depth of flavor that you would probably have to go back several vintages to find an equal.
Tasting Notes
“A wine readers should snatch up, the 2019 Chardonnay Sonoma Coast plays in the same area as the top single vineyard releases and is better than some of them. Offering classic California buttered orchard fruits, honeysuckle, green almonds, and lemon oil, this beauty hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a bright, juicy texture, ample mid-palate concentration, and a great finish. It’s just a stunning bottle of California Chardonnay!”
– 97pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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Charles Heintz
Chardonnay
Vineyard Notes
2019 may stand out as one of the more exceptional vintages in recent memory. Cooler temperatures and stable weather for most of the growing season allowed for slow maturation of flavors without any heat events spiking sugar accumulation in the berries. Although 2019 also saw the devastating Kincade fire in Sonoma County, Pinot Noir and most Chardonnays in the county were harvested by then, so the smoke did not affect the grapes. Overall, look for wines with slightly lower alcohol, higher but integrated acids, and a depth of flavor that you would probably have to go back several vintages to find an equal.
Tasting Notes
“Coming from the Sonoma Coast and aged 14 months in the standard 25%-40% new French oak, the 2019 Chardonnay Charles Heintz is another juicy yet rich, powerful wine. Revealing a vivid gold hue as well as lots of honeyed citrus, white flowers, and almond paste, it has wonderful purity of fruit, bright, almost racy acidity, plenty of mid-palate flesh and depth, and a great finish. It can be enjoyed any time over the coming decade.”
– 96pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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Russian River Valley
Pinot Noir
Vineyard Notes
2019 may stand out as one of the more exceptional vintages in recent memory. Cooler temperatures and stable weather for most of the growing season allowed for slow maturation of flavors without any heat events spiking sugar accumulation in the berries. Although 2019 also saw the devastating Kincade fire in Sonoma County, Pinot Noir and most Chardonnays in the county were harvested by then, so the smoke did not affect the grapes. Overall, look for wines with slightly lower alcohol, higher but integrated acids, and a depth of flavor that you would probably have to go back several vintages to find an equal.
Tasting Notes
“Lots of ripe Bing cherries, mulberries, baking spices, and cola notes emerge from the 2019 Pinot Noir Russian River Valley. Medium to full-bodied, it delivers loads of spice and incense on the palate, ripe tannins, and a good spine of acidity. It’s already complex and drinking nicely yet should easily keep for 7-8 years.”
– 92pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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Sonoma Coast
Pinot noir
Vineyard Notes
2019 may stand out as one of the more exceptional vintages in recent memory. Cooler temperatures and stable weather for most of the growing season allowed for slow maturation of flavors without any heat events spiking sugar accumulation in the berries. Although 2019 also saw the devastating Kincade fire in Sonoma County, Pinot Noir and most Chardonnays in the county were harvested by then, so the smoke did not affect the grapes. Overall, look for wines with slightly lower alcohol, higher but integrated acids, and a depth of flavor that you would probably have to go back several vintages to find an equal.
Tasting Notes
“Looking at their appellation blend, the 2019 Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast is a beautiful wine that certainly gives some insight into the quality coming from this estate today. Offering a medium ruby/plum color as well as rocking notes of black raspberries, darker cherries, scorched earth, graphite, and roasted herbs, it hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, beautiful tannins, no hard edges, and outstanding length. Readers looking for a classic, high-quality, impeccably made Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir cannot go wrong here. It will have 7-8 years of prime drinking.”
– 94pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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UV – Silver Eagle
Chardonnay
Vineyard Notes
Silver Eagle is located on Stoetz Lane, just behind Charles Heintz and our estate, Hillcrest. Ulises Valdez planted the site in 2006 primarily to Pinot noir but included a small amount of Chardonnay and Syrah.
Tasting Notes
“Coming from a great site in the Russian River Valley, the 2019 Chardonnay UV – Silver Eagle was barrel fermented and spent 14 months in 25%-40% new French oak, It has a clean, juicy nose of candied lemons, chalky minerality, caramelized pineapple, and white flowers. This carries to a rich, full-bodied Chardonnay with beautiful richness, some subtle toasty, creamy nuances, nicely integrated acidity, and a great finish. The purity of fruit, balance, and length are all first-class and this is another gorgeous Chardonnay from this team.”
– 96pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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UV – El Diablo
Chardonnay
Vineyard Notes
Planted in 2008 by vineyard manager Ulises Valdez, El Diablo vineyard sits on a ridge above Eastside Road in Russian River Valley. Early in their relationship, he told the Senses team that “when you work hard, the fruit always tastes better.” That holds very true for El Diablo.
Tasting Notes
“Another rock star of a Chardonnay is the 2019 Chardonnay UV – El Diablo. From a site that’s partially named after the renowned grower Ulises Valdez, it’s also known as Eastside Vineyard (Aubert) and just El Diablo by others (Arista, KB, etc). As with the other Chardonnay here, it was barrel fermented and spent 14 months in 25%-40% new French oak. Beautiful buttered orchard fruits, honeysuckle, green almond, pear, and crushed stone notes are just some of the nuances here, and this complex, full-bodied Chardonnay has nicely integrated acidity, a layered, multi-dimensional texture, flawless balance, and a great finish. This is another magical Chardonnay from the team that does everything right. Enjoy bottles over the coming 5-7 years.”
– 97pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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B.A. Thieriot
Chardonnay
Vineyard Notes
Cameron and Bridgit Thieriot, Max’s parents, purchased the property in 1988. In 1989 the first part of the vineyard was planted by the late Warren Dutton of Dutton Ranch. Grapes from these blocks have been sold to Landmark, Williams Selyem, Neyers, Littorai and Rivers-Marie. Year after year this vineyard consistently produces high scoring single vineyard wines and is known to be one of the premiere vineyards in the Sonoma Coast.
Tasting Notes
“Coming from one of the three estate Vineyards and a single block planted in 1989, the 2019 Chardonnay B.A. Thieriot is a brilliant Chardonnay that reminds me of a Grand Cru Chablis with its incredibly salty minerality and racy style as well as beautiful lemon curd, white flowers, honeysuckle, and brioche-driven aromas and flavors. It starts out tight and racy yet builds beautifully with time in the glass and offers more toasted bread and hazelnut nuances, medium to full-bodied richness, flawless balance, and a great, great finish. Given its acidity, it needs 2-4 years of bottle age and will have 10-15 years of overall longevity. The salinity and minerality in this beauty are truly something.”
– 97pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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‘Tenth Stop’
Chardonnay
Vineyard Notes
2019 may stand out as one of the more exceptional vintages in recent memory. Cooler temperatures and stable weather for most of the growing season allowed for slow maturation of flavors without any heat events spiking sugar accumulation in the berries. Although 2019 also saw the devastating Kincade fire in Sonoma County, Pinot Noir and most Chardonnays in the county were harvested by then, so the smoke did not affect the grapes. Overall, look for wines with slightly lower alcohol, higher but integrated acids, and a depth of flavor that you would probably have to go back several vintages to find an equal.
Tasting Notes
“The 2019 Chardonnay Tenth Stop comes from the Dutton Palms Vineyard on the Sonoma Coast and saw the same vinification and élevage as all the wines. It’s still young and tight, with promising notes of crushed citrus, lemon curd, toasted spices, and poached pear. Rich, full-bodied, and one of the richer, softer wines on the palate, it nevertheless has lots of depth and an almost red wine sense of structure that makes me think it’s going to improve with age. I’d give bottles another year or two and it should see its tenth birthday in fine form.”
– 95+pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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‘Day One’ (Hillcrest)
Pinot noir
Vineyard Notes
The Hillcrest Vineyard: where Senses started from day one. We decided that moving forward this wine deserved a special designation. After much thought (and wine) it was clear. “Day One” was the perfect fit. Hillcrest is where the three of us rolled up our sleeves, hand farmed and harvested the entire vineyard and created our very first vintage of Senses Pinot Noir.
Tasting Notes
“All destemmed and brought up in 25%-40% new French oak, the 2019 Pinot Noir Day One comes from the Hillcrest Vineyard, which is one of the estate properties located on the western side of Charles Heintz, on the edge of the Green Valley AVA. It has a classic, almost Russian River-like nose of mulled red and black fruits, forest floor, conifer, and spiced orange. This carries to a medium-bodied Pinot Noir with wonderful purity of fruit, a pure, precise texture, nicely integrated acidity, and a great finish. It’s going to be even better in another year or so and should have a decade of prime drinking.”
– 95pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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‘MCM88’
Pinot Noir
Vineyard Notes
From the famed vineyard formerly known as Keefer Ranch, we bring you the MCM88 Pinot Noir; an exuberant Russian River single vineyard Pinot Noir from the block originally farmed by Kosta Browne.Our boldest Pinot noir yet comes from a very special block in a very special vineyard now known as Perry Ranch. This addition to the Senses family stands apart from its’ siblings with greater concentration and richness. We are very excited about this wine and have named it accordingly: MCM stands for Max, Chris and Myles and doubles for the roman numerals of 1900, which when added to ‘88 marks our birth year of 1988.
Tasting Notes
“The 2019 Pinot Noir MCM88 comes all from the Perry Ranch Vineyard in the Russian River Valley and was all destemmed and aged 10 months in French oak, with roughly 25-40% new. Despite being destemmed, it has loads of savoriness and spice characteristics as well as medium-bodied richness, ripe tannins, noticeable yet nicely integrated acidity, and classy notes of forest floor, wood smoke, black tea (Lapsang Souchong, to be exact), and beautiful cherry and mulberry fruits. It’s beautifully done, has loads of character, and is a gorgeous Russian River Pinot Noir to enjoy over the coming 7-8 years. It needs 30-60 minutes in a decanter if drinking any time soon.”
– 95pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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Terra de Promissio
Pinot noir
Vineyard Notes
Charles and Diana Karren are incredibly passionate about growing grapes. Known as “The Land of Promise”, Terra de Promissio has an ideal terroir for pinot noir. The soil, southwest sun exposure, hill elevation, vine density and the wind and fog of the Petaluma Gap allow the grapes to have a slow maturation & extended hang time, which allows optimum ripeness ideal conditions for the pinot noir grape. This site is shared with Williams Selyem, Kistler, Kosta Browne, Hanzell, and others.
Tasting Notes
“The 2019 Pinot Noir Terra de Promissio comes from the Petaluma Gap region (although it’s released as a Sonoma Coast) and as with all of the Pinot Noirs, it was destemmed and brought up in French oak. Lots of smoky red and black fruits, roasted herbs, conifer forest, and exotic spice notes define the nose on this beauty, and it’s medium to full-bodied, with a rich, structured mouthfeel and just beautiful overall balance. It’s certainly one of the more structured, firm wines in the lineup, but it’s loaded with potential. Give bottles 2-3 years if you can (it’s far from inaccessible today) and it’s going to evolve for over a decade.”
– 95pts, Jeb Dunnuck
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Oakville, Napa Valley
Cabernet Sauvignon
Vineyard Notes
The Oakville region is known for producing some of the most sought after wines from the Napa Valley and is considered the ‘heart and soul of Napa Valley,’ where the up-valley warmth is balanced by the coolness from the southern appellations. This unique terroir produces Cabernet deep in color, with velvety tannic structure and balanced acids. Known for its rich and complex soils, Oakville Cabernet exudes dark fruits and blackcurrant. Thomas produces this limited Senses Cabernet in the quintessential Oakville style, aging the wine for 20 months in 100% new French oak which adds smoothness and nuances of dried fruits and spices.
Tasting Notes
“Sporting a deep garnet-purple color, it sings of warm cassis, baked black cherries and mulberries with a beautiful undercurrent of fragrant earth, menthol, crushed rocks, candied violets and cedar chest. The full-bodied palate has wonderful intensity, features tons of bright, crunchy, black fruit layers and lots of perfumed nuances, supported by a solid backbone of ripe grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing with fantastic length and energy. Very impressive!”
– 97+, Lisa Perrotti-Brown RPWA