MacMurray Ranch, Russian River Valley (Sonoma County, California) Pinot Noir 2011

This very tastefully made Pinot shows fresh, delectable black cherry fruit with subtly herbal, faintly earthy backnotes. The weight is modest by comparison to many California Pinots that come off as chunky and obvious, and the wine’s color also shows admirable restraint. However, the flavors are quite generous, and there’s enough grip in the finish to enable this to work well at the table. In light of the fact that this wine is made in substantial quantities, it is very impressive.