J Vineyards & Winery, Russian River Valley (California) Nicole’s Vineyard Pinot Noir 2005 ($50): If you didn’t know that J Vineyards & Winery is owned by a woman, you might 
nevertheless figure that it is. The evidence, in a word, would be style: stylish bottles, stylish website, innovative and stylish branding. And the wines themselves? Well, my summary descriptor for this 2005 Pinot Noir just happens to be ‘extremely stylish.’
The woman behind J is the ebullient, energetic Judy Jordan, who founded the winery 21 years ago as a sparkling wine operation. Today, the J label (or etched bottle) graces three Pinot Noirs, a Pinot Gris, a Chardonnay and a Vin Gris, as well as four excellent sparkling wines.
Many of California’s sparkling wine companies branched out into still Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the past decade or so, presumably because the sparkling wine business is very challenging unless your wine comes from Champagne. J made its first Pinot Noir, from Nicole’s Vineyard, in 1994. Today more than 30% of the winery’s production is Pinot Noir.
J makes three Pinot Noirs, all from the Russian River Valley. This wine, Nicole’s Vineyard Pinot Noir, comes from a 42-acre vineyard that is the crown jewel of J’s eight estate vineyards. This site boasts small-clustered clones of Pinot Noir (specifically 115, 113 and 2A) that give small crops of intensely flavored, concentrated grapes.
The 2005 J Nicole’s Vineyard Pinot Noir has complex aromas and flavors that mingle cherry, spice, blackberry and tart red berries. At this young age, it needs aeration to show the intensity of its aromatics, but even when the wine has just been opened the aromas and flavors stand out for being very refined and pure. The wine is full-bodied but not huge, with enlivening acidity that gives it depth within its silky texture. The tannic presence on the rear palate is not at all obtrusive, being far outweighed by the wine’s warm core of black cherry fruit. This wine has the very special quality of definition–of expressing itself in a precise, as opposed to an unfocussed, way. After you swallow, the wine lingers as a fresh, pure fruity expression.
When I tasted this wine blind, I was surprised to discover that it is from Russian River Valley, because it is more delicate and less lush than the typical Pinot Noir from that area. But the wine’s delicacy and precision is its secret weapon. This is a Pinot Noir that you can taste again and again without tiring of it–in fact, appreciating it more with every sip. It’s a Pinot Noir that you can age for several years without concern that it will grow flaccid. For now, be sure to use a large, expansive Pinot Noir or Burgundy glass to help the wine open up. Try it with something as simple as roast chicken or something more flavorful, such as a pork stir-fry, blackened salmon or crab cakes. Thanks to its fruitiness, its acidity and its complexity of flavor, it can please with a wide variety of foods.
92 Points