2011 J. Rochioli, Pinot Noir, West Block, Russian River Valley.
Picked out of the cellar on a whim to share with my brother and nephew, the 2011 Rochioli West Block proved majestic and perfectly performed with deep fruit and cool vintage class, while seriously lavish and rich, it shows brilliant detail, acidity and wonderful persistence, I was gratefully surprised at the level of purity and grace. I’ve always been a fan of West Block first planted in 1969 and with a parcel recently re-planted in 2008, with it’s heritage selection of clones, it always delivers a dark ruby/garnet hue with a hint of brick and a medium/full palate with ripe black cherry, fresh picked plum, cola bean, wild berry, apple skin, baking spices and a touch of earth with this 2011 adding a bit of cranberry and violet/rose petal tones. I was thrilled from the first sip to the last, it stayed remarkably focused and structured from the moment the cork was popped to that last drop that came out of the bottle, most people avoid 2011, but this wine is everything you’d want or expect from Rochioli, impressive, it goes beyond expectations and excels in this vintage, I really hope I have another one tucked away! This 2011 West Block has plenty of life to go, I might suggest another 3 to 5 years be added to the window here, best from 2018 to 2024, I imagine this will be showing up on Winebid, and with the lack of love for this year being what it is, this might be undervalued, it is a dark horse or sleeper, it will be a rewarding capture.
($80-110 Est.) 95 Points, grapelive
