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The Helfer Vineyard is located in the Vine Hill area of the Russian River Valley. The vineyard’s densely planted vines require hand cultivation and yield more concentrated fruit than can be achieved by traditional California vine spacing. We bottle this Chardonnay without fining or filtration to preserve its finer qualities.

Pinot Noir from Sonoma County varies in its expression according to where it is grown. This wine exhibits the sassafras character of coastal Pinot Noirs, as well as the cola of those from the area between Sebastopol and Santa Rosa. Moderately structured, it has a central core of red fruits and lightly toasty oak that anchor these coastal and inland elements. It should be at its best two to six years after the vintage.

We would never be able to forgive ourselves if we didn’t set aside some Pinot Noir from this one single vineyard block and bottle it separately. Both complex and ‘sneaky,’ it possesses our favorite qualities of this variety and region. While seductive in the short term, it should age magnificently due to its balance and gently taut, structural core.

My favorite syrahs tend to come from sites where the grapes may not be able to ripen to the same degree every vintage. Calypso Vineyard, perched in a slightly warmer, higher site inside this very cool area, is one of those. It is farmed practically single–handedly by owner Otis Holt, and is truly a labor of love.

This wine is a synthesis of sites where wildlife and viticulture meet at the edge of civilization. From both the far eastern and western edges of Sonoma County, the wine speaks of more of this general wildness than of a specific variety or site. It should pair well with the types of foods found in the area as well: game, flavorful mushrooms and the like.

Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is typically one of the softer, rounder manifestations of the varietal. This is the more open-structured of our two Cabernet bottlings, which reveals its accessible, yet substantial and age-worthy personality. Rich, plummy, lightly herbal, and toasty, with mild cassis character, this unfined, unfiltered wine will complement a wide variety of foods for many years.