Our Wine

After years of tackling Napa Valley’s rugged mountain fruit, Proprietors Pat and Anne Stotesbery, who are also the creators of Ladera Vineyards on Howell Mountain in Napa Valley, soon became interested in the finesse of California Pinot Noir. In March of 2006, after scouting multiple vineyard sites, Pat and Anne visited the Pillow Rd location, a small Pinot Noir vineyard lined with old Gravenstein apple orchards. Immediately taken back to their roots, Pat and Anne knew that the area would perfectly complement their family farming traditions and trust that the Pillow Rd story is a true tribute to one of California’s most celebrated agricultural areas.

Statistics

* Blend : 100% Pinot Noir
100% Russian River Valley
* Alcohol : 14.3% pH : 3.63
* ——> Barrels : Aged for 11 months in 34% new French oak barrels and 66% 1 and 2 year old French oak barrels.
* Bottled : 974 cases bottled on August 11, 2008

Winemaking

The 2007 Pinot Noir was fermented in many small (1 to 2 ton) fermentors, some with a small amount of whole clusters. The grapes were put in the open top tanks via gravity, after hand sorting. The must was punched down as much as 6-7 times per day. All wines were fermented with natural yeasts for about 7 days, after a 5 day cold soak. After pressing at dryness, the wine was put in barrels by gravity for an 11 month barrel aging in Burgundian French oak barrels.
Tasting Notes

The wine was made with the idea of simplicity and finesse in mind. We wanted this wine to express the fruit from the vineyard with as little manipulation as possible. The style of this Pinot Noir is just that; pure elegance. The 2007 Pillow Road Pinot Noir has fresh aromas of strawberry, raspberry and quince. The entry is soft and rich yet lively. The mid palate shows silky tannins and true but gentle flavors. A balanced acidity leads to a long and satisfying finish that is clean, complex and vareitally true.