Merry Edwards Winery, Russian River Valley (Sonoma County, California) Pinot Noir 2019

 The Merry Edwards wines are now being made by Heidi von der Mehden, who had to fill some of the biggest shoes in all of American winemaking when Merry herself stepped away from that role.  It must be said that quality has not slipped at all, and this single vineyard Pinot (which I have tasted over at least the previous 15 vintages) is as delicious as any I can remember.  Impressively concentrated but still fairly light on its feet, it shows delicious black cherry and berry fruit with nice spice notes and just a whiff of toasty oak, as all the overt wood notes have already been absorbed by the rich fruit.  Consequently, this is already delicious, but the track record of this vineyard’s fruit from this cellar indicates that this will be significantly more complex in 5 years, and better still in 10.  I know that last sentence won’t make your consumption decision any easier, but the decision of whether to buy this in the first place could hardly be easier.