April 2012 Rhys Visit--Taste The 2010s

Was up for a visit recently, to taste through some wines. I appreciated very much Jeff showing us through the 2010s and having a chance to discuss the wines with him. For my palate and what I find myself attracted to now, these wines are of keen interest to me. There is structure, acid, red fruit (not all but many of them) and intensity. I can't proclaim what others should drink, what tastes or styles of pinot that represents the "right" course, only what works for me. I really enjoy these wines, especially the chardonnays that were thrilling this time, along with many of the pinot noirs like the Skyline and the Swan Terrace. I also enjoyed the new Horsehoe syrah. All of my notes are contained below and thanks to Jeff for a terrific afternoon in the castle. One thing I should note about Jeff Brinkman, he has command of these wines in terms of the vision, winemaking and backstory for each of them. Very impressive.

PS--I should note that we also tasted some wines from a few past vintages, which I embedded into the notes below in the order I tasted them. These additional wines offer some context for how some of these cuvees to me are evolving.

• 2010 Rhys Chardonnay Horseshoe Vineyard

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Bottle was opened earlier in the morning, tasted in late afternoon. Listed alc 13.4% with 25% new wood. Mineral, orange blossom, mandarin orange, lean pineapple, green apple and honey. Has a rich element to the fruit but the acid holds it all together. Not as intense as the 2010 Alpine chard but I enjoyed this a lot.

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• 2010 Rhys Chardonnay Alpine Vineyard

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Bottle was opened earlier in the morning, tasted in late afternoon. Listed alc 13.2% with 25% new wood. As compared to the 2010 Horseshoe chard, this Alpine has the edges more filled in, texturally more complete and rounder. Lemon zest, almost grapefuit-like in the intensity of the acidity. Brisk and long with orange oil. One of the best CA chards I have tasted and in my view a standard setter for what CA chard can be. Tremendous.

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• 2007 Rhys Chardonnay Horseshoe Vineyard

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Listed alc 13.5% and 25% new wood. Color here is slightly darker than the 2010s (no surprise) and also the 2008 Alpine, which was also tasted alongside. This 2007 has an intense core of flavor, with excellent depth. Yellow apple, lemon and a long finish. Vibrant acidity with a rounder texture and fresh lime oil.

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• 2008 Rhys Chardonnay Alpine Vineyard

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  I last tasted this wine in Dec 2010, which I sourced a bottle from the winery for a dinner we were conducting. At that time, I thought and wrote about the oak sticking out for me. In today's bottle, that oak has fully integrated and the wine is far different, and better, than that 2010 bottle. Listed alc 13.3% with 25% new wood. Pineapple, yellow and green apple, with lemony citrus that really carries the wine. Drinking very well and delicious.

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• 2010 Rhys Pinot Noir San Mateo County

  USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County

  Listed alc 13.3%, with 66% whole cluster and 40% new wood. A blend of the various single vineyard parcels, the fruit that didn't make the single cuvee cuts. Starts out with a gamey, sauvage quality with floral dark fruit, both red and black. However, it's not for me the sweet black but instead more dark plum in tone. Also shows a soily, iron note. Not elegant or overly complex but shows a good push of solid fruit. Stems show in the aromatic, they add a pungence to the palate.

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• 2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Family Farm Vineyard

  USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County

  Added to the database so this is early on in the wine's chronicle. Listed alc 12.7%, with 66% whole cluster and 40% new wood. Stem signature is present but not prominent. The fruit shows a lush quality, expressive, bright with orange rind, blue and red, a strawberry note. It also exhibits a crunchy and zesty quality, vibrant. I want to convey the energy in the wine, the juicy quailty that it shows on the palate. Very good.

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• 2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Home Vineyard

  USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County

  Added to the database so an early look at this wine from bottle, for sure. Listed alc is 12.5% with 100% whole cluster and 15% new wood. Floral and woodsy with a hint of pepper, all of this intending to convey spice. Has such a pure cherry flavor, an intense core of red fruit and acidity, with good minerality showing in the finish. I also found a sour red apple note, too. What I found compelling about this cuvee is despite the low wood and complete stem inclusion, there is simply for me no real stem signature to speak of--amazing. Really a terrific bottle of pinot noir.

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• 2008 Rhys Pinot Noir Home Vineyard

  USA, California, San Francisco Bay, San Mateo County

  Tasted alongside the 2010 Home, which was excellent. For this 2008, listed alc of 13.0% with 100% whole cluster and 0% new wood. Exotic aromatic, richer than the 2010 and certainly for me up a level in volume. The fruit just seems more dense to me, whereas the 2010 is more pure and acidity driven. Dark watermelon, dark strawberry and cherry juice. Where this wine succeeds is despite the higher volume level, it stays all together with a real intensity.

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• 2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Bearwallow Vineyard

  USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley

  Listed alc 13.4% with 50% whole cluster and new oak. I have to say, this wine did not thrill me at this stage as the other cuvees on this visit. The wine has a density that I did not warm up to and the stems also show on the aromatic. The fruit seemed blue to me and I found a black licorice note, an anise-like component. The fruit seems sweeter in tone to me, also. Overall, it doesn't have the definition or core integration that some of the other 2010s showed me. Just calling it as I found it. Will it get better? I will be looking forward to others logging some impressions so I can compare.

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• 2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Added to the database and what a treat to be the first one to log a note here. Listed alc of 12.4% with 100% whole cluster and 50% new wood. Shows beautiful aromatics, quite floral. Some decadence in the bouquet but like the 2010 Home pinot, the stems are beautifully woven into this wine already. Perfect balance and yet there is also weight here. Strawberry, raspberry, elegant and even. Just a complete wine with acid, flavor and minerality. This is a helluva wine.

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• 2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Horseshoe Vineyard

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Added to the database. Listed alc is 12.8% with 66% whole cluster and new oak. Stems show here. Fleshy dark cherry, some of the new wood also seaps into the flavor of the palate, probably the most (and really only) of any of the 2010s I tried. Red raspberry, some nice red fruits and good acid, along with some river rock. At this point, the wood tannin (?) and vanilla is still a player but I believe the raw material is here to build forward. Too soon to judge this wine based upon how for me it is showing.

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• 2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Alpine Vineyard

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Listed alc of 13.6% with 66% whole cluster and 50% new oak. For me, this was the richest flavored of all the 2010s. Shows a black fruit, and a note that Alan Rath who was seated next to me called "meat juice". Pretty dead on descriptor. Some of the menthol from the stems is also in the palate. Finishes with a mineral tone and orange zest.

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• 2010 Rhys Pinot Noir Swan Terrace

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Added to database and what a wine it is even so early on in its life. Listed alc of 13.6% with 100% whole cluster and 33% new wood. I tasted this wine alongside the 2010 Alpine, which is simply a different exposure and clonal selection from the Swan, but by god the 2 are damn near in the same plot and yet for me, the Swan just beats the Alpine hands down. The aromatic is just stunning, aided by a mix of florals and stems, culminating in a piercing display. Like with the 2010 Skyline, the balance here is beautiful, with fruit showing in the vein of cherry hard candy. Lithe and elegant. Whereas the 2010 Alpine shows a heady, dark richness, the Swan here shows a nice spicy core of blue and red fruit, orange rind and kiwi. Minerality, too. What a stunner of a pinot.

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• 2006 Rhys Pinot Noir Alpine Hillside

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Had not tasted this wine previously and was appreciative that Jeff pulled this for the group to try. Shows a hint of smoke, a gamy note. While this was a pop and pour (take that into context, plz), the wine still showed raspberry, that was spicy and energetic, as well as juicy. Very nice.

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• 2010 Rhys Syrah Horseshoe Vineyard

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Added to the database, so again, a wine early on in its life. Listed alc of 12.8% with 100% whole cluster and 0% new wood. As with past Horseshoe syrahs, this maintains its pedigree of the black pepper aromatic. I love this quality to syrah and its dead on here, too. Tangy blue fruit, sweet leather and green olive. Finishes with a burst of fruit and tannin. This is a young wine, and while now in bottle, call this an early look.

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• 2010 Rhys Syrah Skyline Vineyard

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Like with the 2010 Horseshoe syrah, had to add this to the database, so keep in context this is an early look at a young wine. Made exactly like the Horseshoe--100% whole cluster and 0% new wood, with 12.8% listed alc. Unlike the Horseshoe, no pepper here. Instead, blue and purple flower, with blue fruit. Also, a maple note, which I might attribute to new wood or ripe fruit but neither of those are at play here. Tangy with a sweeter edge. At this stage, I prefer the 2010 Horseshoe as it's more rugged and savory. I'll also note that this was the last wine I tasted during the visit so my palate was growing a bit tired. I do believe I captured the wine pretty closely, though.

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