2015 Allen Vineyard Pinot Noir
Buying options
Tasting notes
(13.5% alcohol, lousy weather during the flowering resulted in millerandage): Good dark red. Aromas of dark raspberry and cola. Densely packed and thick, but with captivating inner-mouth perfume giving verve to the middle palate. Very young and unevolved, more voluminous than the 14 example but does it have that wine's impeccable balance? This deeply colored, extract-rich wine finishes with a firm tannic spine and lovely mineral lift. Even in 2015, said Mangahas, nearly 70% of this fruit came from the original 1974 planting. Williams-Selyem actually irrigated its vineyards in December of 14 due to the extremely dry conditions. Following an atypically warm January, the budbreak took place very early, at the beginning of February. After the poor weather during flowering, the rest of May and early June were cool and the growing season avoided heat spikes.
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Wine Enthusiast
More reviews and scores
This wine takes a light-handed approach, allowing its soul to speak quietly in a blur of perfumed rose petal, lavender and wildflower. The expansive, velvety palate offers highlights of pomegranate, strawberry and freshly squeezed citrus, with pronounced earthy sensations of crushed rock, salt and turned earth. — Virginie Boone
About the producer
Williams Selyem is an iconic Russian River Valley winery best known for its Pinot Noir. Producing restrained yet classically Californian expressions of the heartbreak grape (as well as a host of other wines), the property has gone from pioneer to one of the region’s standard-bearers.