Medium red with limited transparency. Ripe cherry, slight floral and vanilla nose. Palate has sweet cherry, rhubarb, and candied cranberry with a vanilla and hint of chocolate on a medium finish. This has fully integrated and developed into a well-balanced wine. Delicious now. Drink or hold.
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Medium ruby/garnet with medium intensity, developing aromas of violet, cranberry, pomegranate, cherry, nutmeg, forest floor butterscotch, and cedar. This wine has high alcohol, medium body, and tannins and acidity. This wine has medium intensity, flavors of pomegranate, cranberry, cherry, nutmeg , butter, scotch, and a medium plus finish. This is a good wine that should be drunk now until 2026.
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Crimson in color. 14.5% ABV. Stunning nose of red fruits, cloves, baking spices and forest floor. Medium to full body with exquisite acidity. Tremendous purity of fruit and perfect balance. There is an earth quality too the wine that is immensely appealing. Cherry, cranberry, cola and soil on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. Gorgeous Pinot Noir that puts Little Hill in the conversation of the top single vineyard designates from Rochioli. About as good as it gets from the Russian River Valley. Best over the next 2-4 years.
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Wow. Got off the golf course, started a risotto and threw some local asarsgus and a sockeye filet on the grill. Pulled this from the cooler, PNP and super happy. Agree with most earlier comments: dark, earthy and deeply flavored, but with nice Pinot character and a blooming back end. This has plenty of life left. Much more going on here than some/many cola-flavored RRV pinots. Delicious wine. Happy to see what’s next.
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Deep red color, nearly opaque. Ripe raspberry and cherry nose with some floral and spice elements. Palate has a grapey character that distracts from the cherry, raspberry, and blackberry fruit character. All of the berry fruit is on the riper side of the spectrum, but not jammy. The finish is medium. With time in the glass, this does lose some of th distracting elements, but remains big and fruity. I wanted more evolution and some sort of earth or mineral element to emerge. It didn't. Nice wine, but not up to my high expectations. Drink or hold.
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Last opened over four years ago, the 2008 Little Hill has not lost a step, and is drinking beautifully. A rich pinot noir, it displayed lots of cherries, raspberries, black fruits, spice, and earthiness in the nose and flavor with hints of licorice. Medium to full bodied, nice complexity, and a long smooth finish.
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First time trying this wine. Strawberry and cherry, medium minus body, medium acid, long finish, and can still feel the heat. Very enjoyable but even better the next day. In a good place now. Will wait to see how this evolves over the next year.
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PnP. Medium dark red; clearing at the rim. Lovely nose of cherry, blackberry, and strawberry with a spicy note which has developed since I opened the last bottle. On the palate this has lovely fruit intensity with enough acidity to make it dance. Finish goes on for at least 30 seconds. It may take 10 years for these Rochioli Pinots to reach their plateau of maturity. Drinking beautifully now but could go longer. I expect this will be drinking very well from the remains of the bottle tomorrow.
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Very clean intense fruit. Excellent medium young PN. Only slightly out distanced tonight by an amazing 1983 Hanzell Sonoma County PN with more complexity and aftertaste.
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PnP. Medium dark red. Gushing nose of a panoply of berries and a zing of cola. Can't believe people think this is restrained, even compared to Kistler. On the palate - massive fruit, just this side of over done, with a vein of acidity and velvet texture which keep things on the side of sanity. Long intense finish. Given these characteristics I would say drink soon as this may crack up but given other notes, who knows!?
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My first Little Hill. If tasted blind, I would have guessed Burgundy, certainly not RRV. Red cherry on the nose, but light on the palate in both weight and fruit. Tart, due to light fruit & moderate acid. Some interesting spices. Not sure whether the LH '08s are fading, or whether this is a representative TN.
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Marvelous for the generic release. Compares favorably with the single vineyards without quite the depth. Wonderful nuance and layers that keep your interest
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Had this at a dinner comparing it to Kistler Pinots. 1 bottle from 2008 and 2012 from both producers. I really liked this, but compared to the big fruit forward flavors of the Kistler this turned into a shrinking violet. Almost picking up some bitter flavors after trying the Kistler. Too bad, because on its own, this is a great wine. It is a very delicate wine and it just doesn't show well when side by side with a fruit bomb.
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One of the great Pinots out there. I only recently was able to get some, but have accumulated about a case over Winebid. Great, complex wine. Since it has a little age on it, it is pretty great right from the first pour. If this wine peaked earlier, I wouldn't be able to tell. It is still drinking really well. Rochioli was on a roll with some of the 2008 and 2009 single vineyard varietals. Some of the 2010s and 2012s are quite good too, but this 2009 Little Hill and maybe it's 2008 cousin rank right up there.
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Popped and poured. Improved over the night. Medium ruby red. Great aromas of raspberry, strawberry, currant, a hint of cola andfloral. Medium body with very soft tannins. Flavors of currant, raspberry, strawberry , spice and cola leading to a nice long soft finish. Still very primary, but very enjoyable.
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PnP. Medium red. Lovely red fruits on the nose, raspberry, strawberry. Medium weight with good intensity and a lingering finish. Not terribly complex and perhaps a bit young, but clearly superior to the '06 but not at the level of the '04. May get there with a couple more years. Nice wine. Greatly superior to an 05 Aubert Reuling opened on the same night.
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No notes taken, this was a while ago, pop and pour, everyone liked it but all agreed that it was a bit too big of a pinot for grilled salmon. No hurry, lots of life left and will probably pull back a little on the fruit with more bottle age
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Decanted for about 30 minutes. Nice nose of smoke, dark fruit and a little spice. On the palate, this was pure decadence, although not in an over-extracted way. Soft onthe palate, but still some acidity that kept it perfectlhy in balance. great, long-lasting finish. I wish I had taken notes. This blew away the "wine of the year". Thank you Bill!!!
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Wow, this really stank. And I'm normally a big Rochioli fan. The nose was muted but opened up after a few minutes to reveal vibrant fruit. And on the palate it seemed there was a lush strawberry feel. But other than that, it was quite thin with little mouth feel or finish, and very out of balance as well. Sounds like a different bottle after reading the below comments. Given that I opened it to toast my cat, the best cat ever, that I had to put down today, perhaps my palate is off kilter. With this back drop and out of deference to my fellow reviewers, I'll refrain from trashing this wine with the 84 I'm thinking of now. But there is about 75% of it left to try tomorrow, so we'll see.... Next day. Hmmm, more of the same. The nose improved, opened up, but same palate issues. Seemed hot and acidic. Horrible QPR at $70. Was not corked, so don't know why the disconnect with the other reviewers. I had less than half a glass and switched to vodka tonics two nights in a row, no interest in this wine. Wife said it was ok so she polished it off.
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Popped and poured. A slightly smoky, slightly earthy nose. A little tight at first, but opened up in the glass after a few minutes. Great fruit flavors. Could stand some more time in the bottle and perhaps some decanting next time. Looking forward to the other two bottles in the future.
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Medium dark ruby color, not showing much on the nose for me; chocked full of rich, intense, brambly dark cherry, hints of pine and spice; plenty of lush fruit, definitely California, but vibrant, balanced, and interesting to drink. Beautiful wine.
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what possessed me to open this so early? Pure curiousity. This was very tannin and tight when opened, but really improved after a day or so, smoky notes of candied cherry and red fruit. Firm backback and nice long finish-not as overripe as some Rochiloi's I've had recently, this has a long future in front of it, will have to hold this at least five years to compare it then.
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1/7/2024 - fredb Likes this wine:
Medium red with limited transparency. Ripe cherry, slight floral and vanilla nose. Palate has sweet cherry, rhubarb, and candied cranberry with a vanilla and hint of chocolate on a medium finish. This has fully integrated and developed into a well-balanced wine. Delicious now. Drink or hold.
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1/22/2023 - lewisrise wrote: 94 Points
Medium ruby/garnet with medium intensity, developing aromas of violet, cranberry, pomegranate, cherry, nutmeg, forest floor butterscotch, and cedar. This wine has high alcohol, medium body, and tannins and acidity. This wine has medium intensity, flavors of pomegranate, cranberry, cherry, nutmeg , butter, scotch, and a medium plus finish. This is a good wine that should be drunk now until 2026.
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8/1/2022 - peterk Likes this wine:
Still drinking beautifully. I note that 59 percent of the Cellatracker community's bottles have been consumed so far!
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2/14/2022 - M Macht Likes this wine: 94 Points
Amazing, excellent
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11/1/2021 - tomlee wrote: 96 Points
Crimson in color. 14.5% ABV. Stunning nose of red fruits, cloves, baking spices and forest floor. Medium to full body with exquisite acidity. Tremendous purity of fruit and perfect balance. There is an earth quality too the wine that is immensely appealing. Cherry, cranberry, cola and soil on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. Gorgeous Pinot Noir that puts Little Hill in the conversation of the top single vineyard designates from Rochioli. About as good as it gets from the Russian River Valley. Best over the next 2-4 years.
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10/9/2021 - Stefanatic Likes this wine: 95 Points
Still improving and strong!
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7/21/2020 - Kbrumback Likes this wine: 93 Points
Wow. Got off the golf course, started a risotto and threw some local asarsgus and a sockeye filet on the grill. Pulled this from the cooler, PNP and super happy. Agree with most earlier comments: dark, earthy and deeply flavored, but with nice Pinot character and a blooming back end. This has plenty of life left. Much more going on here than some/many cola-flavored RRV pinots. Delicious wine. Happy to see what’s next.
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3/1/2020 - fredb wrote:
Deep red color, nearly opaque. Ripe raspberry and cherry nose with some floral and spice elements. Palate has a grapey character that distracts from the cherry, raspberry, and blackberry fruit character. All of the berry fruit is on the riper side of the spectrum, but not jammy. The finish is medium. With time in the glass, this does lose some of th distracting elements, but remains big and fruity. I wanted more evolution and some sort of earth or mineral element to emerge. It didn't. Nice wine, but not up to my high expectations. Drink or hold.
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9/11/2019 - buckeye76 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Last opened over four years ago, the 2008 Little Hill has not lost a step, and is drinking beautifully. A rich pinot noir, it displayed lots of cherries, raspberries, black fruits, spice, and earthiness in the nose and flavor with hints of licorice. Medium to full bodied, nice complexity, and a long smooth finish.
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12/30/2018 - djpin Likes this wine: 92 Points
First time trying this wine. Strawberry and cherry, medium minus body, medium acid, long finish, and can still feel the heat. Very enjoyable but even better the next day. In a good place now. Will wait to see how this evolves over the next year.
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8/27/2018 - rosenst1 wrote: 93 Points
PnP. Medium dark red; clearing at the rim. Lovely nose of cherry, blackberry, and strawberry with a spicy note which has developed since I opened the last bottle. On the palate this has lovely fruit intensity with enough acidity to make it dance. Finish goes on for at least 30 seconds. It may take 10 years for these Rochioli Pinots to reach their plateau of maturity. Drinking beautifully now but could go longer. I expect this will be drinking very well from the remains of the bottle tomorrow.
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10/13/2017 - daved wrote: flawed
flawed
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8/21/2016 - noofie2 wrote: 94 Points
Very clean intense fruit. Excellent medium young PN. Only slightly out distanced tonight by an amazing 1983 Hanzell Sonoma County PN with more complexity and aftertaste.
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8/1/2016 - shaferguy91 wrote: 93 Points
Drinking beautifully. No decant.
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4/18/2016 - rosenst1 wrote: 91 Points
PnP. Medium dark red. Gushing nose of a panoply of berries and a zing of cola. Can't believe people think this is restrained, even compared to Kistler. On the palate - massive fruit, just this side of over done, with a vein of acidity and velvet texture which keep things on the side of sanity. Long intense finish. Given these characteristics I would say drink soon as this may crack up but given other notes, who knows!?
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3/30/2016 - wDave wrote: 92 Points
Very very good. Kept improving while open. Deep and complex flavors. Favorite wine of the night.
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1/22/2016 - pjhr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Delicious ripe red cherry, floral, and nutmeg notes on the nose and silky palate with long finish.
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12/14/2015 - VlgJeff wrote: 88 Points
My first Little Hill. If tasted blind, I would have guessed Burgundy, certainly not RRV. Red cherry on the nose, but light on the palate in both weight and fruit. Tart, due to light fruit & moderate acid. Some interesting spices. Not sure whether the LH '08s are fading, or whether this is a representative TN.
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11/16/2015 - nbrue wrote: 94 Points
Marvelous for the generic release. Compares favorably with the single vineyards without quite the depth. Wonderful nuance and layers that keep your interest
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9/27/2015 - SMHalps Likes this wine: 91 Points
Had this at a dinner comparing it to Kistler Pinots. 1 bottle from 2008 and 2012 from both producers. I really liked this, but compared to the big fruit forward flavors of the Kistler this turned into a shrinking violet. Almost picking up some bitter flavors after trying the Kistler. Too bad, because on its own, this is a great wine. It is a very delicate wine and it just doesn't show well when side by side with a fruit bomb.
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5/29/2015 - Jsk2738 Likes this wine: 96 Points
One of the great Pinots out there. I only recently was able to get some, but have accumulated about a case over Winebid. Great, complex wine. Since it has a little age on it, it is pretty great right from the first pour. If this wine peaked earlier, I wouldn't be able to tell. It is still drinking really well. Rochioli was on a roll with some of the 2008 and 2009 single vineyard varietals. Some of the 2010s and 2012s are quite good too, but this 2009 Little Hill and maybe it's 2008 cousin rank right up there.
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3/27/2015 - buckeye76 wrote: 94 Points
CHERRIES, RASPBERRIES AND EARTHINESS IN THE NOSE AND FLAVOR. NICE COMPLEXITY AND A LONG FINISH.
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4/14/2014 - gharter wrote: 91 Points
Popped and poured. Improved over the night. Medium ruby red. Great aromas of raspberry, strawberry, currant, a hint of cola andfloral. Medium body with very soft tannins. Flavors of currant, raspberry, strawberry , spice and cola leading to a nice long soft finish. Still very primary, but very enjoyable.
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4/6/2014 - rosenst1 wrote: 91 Points
PnP. Medium red. Lovely red fruits on the nose, raspberry, strawberry. Medium weight with good intensity and a lingering finish. Not terribly complex and perhaps a bit young, but clearly superior to the '06 but not at the level of the '04. May get there with a couple more years. Nice wine. Greatly superior to an 05 Aubert Reuling opened on the same night.
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1/12/2014 - pgordon62 wrote: flawed
Just so slightly corked. Bummer!
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12/31/2012 - d_chism Likes this wine: 94 Points
Delicious. I wish I had more. Berry flavors with Russian river cola notes.
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12/23/2012 - Fred44 wrote: 94 Points
Spicy, blackberry, plumb-look out Burgundy, here comes J. Roch!
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8/8/2012 - winelovr2001 wrote: 94 Points
A great pinot noir. Nice extraction and typical RRV pinot flavors. Well done
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7/7/2012 - blaine wrote:
No notes taken, this was a while ago, pop and pour, everyone liked it but all agreed that it was a bit too big of a pinot for grilled salmon. No hurry, lots of life left and will probably pull back a little on the fruit with more bottle age
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12/17/2011 - nittanyjack wrote: 94 Points
Decanted for about 30 minutes. Nice nose of smoke, dark fruit and a little spice. On the palate, this was pure decadence, although not in an over-extracted way. Soft onthe palate, but still some acidity that kept it perfectlhy in balance. great, long-lasting finish. I wish I had taken notes. This blew away the "wine of the year". Thank you Bill!!!
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9/7/2011 - samiamx_1999 wrote: 87 Points
Wow, this really stank. And I'm normally a big Rochioli fan. The nose was muted but opened up after a few minutes to reveal vibrant fruit. And on the palate it seemed there was a lush strawberry feel. But other than that, it was quite thin with little mouth feel or finish, and very out of balance as well. Sounds like a different bottle after reading the below comments. Given that I opened it to toast my cat, the best cat ever, that I had to put down today, perhaps my palate is off kilter. With this back drop and out of deference to my fellow reviewers, I'll refrain from trashing this wine with the 84 I'm thinking of now. But there is about 75% of it left to try tomorrow, so we'll see.... Next day. Hmmm, more of the same. The nose improved, opened up, but same palate issues. Seemed hot and acidic. Horrible QPR at $70. Was not corked, so don't know why the disconnect with the other reviewers. I had less than half a glass and switched to vodka tonics two nights in a row, no interest in this wine. Wife said it was ok so she polished it off.
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1/21/2011 - moutondoc wrote: 95 Points
great bottle! Typical Rochioli style, up front fruit but with exquisite balance. wish I had ordered more
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12/28/2010 - JayAAllen wrote: 92 Points
Popped and poured. A slightly smoky, slightly earthy nose. A little tight at first, but opened up in the glass after a few minutes. Great fruit flavors. Could stand some more time in the bottle and perhaps some decanting next time. Looking forward to the other two bottles in the future.
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12/25/2010 - alanr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Medium dark ruby color, not showing much on the nose for me; chocked full of rich, intense, brambly dark cherry, hints of pine and spice; plenty of lush fruit, definitely California, but vibrant, balanced, and interesting to drink. Beautiful wine.
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12/12/2010 - Ki Punwar wrote: 91 Points
what possessed me to open this so early? Pure curiousity. This was very tannin and tight when opened, but really improved after a day or so, smoky notes of candied cherry and red fruit. Firm backback and nice long finish-not as overripe as some Rochiloi's I've had recently, this has a long future in front of it, will have to hold this at least five years to compare it then.
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