2018 Intent, Pinot Noir, Home Block, Anderson Valley.
The 2018 Intent Pinot Noir, 100% Pommard clone and all biodynamic was sourced from Filigreen Farm, which is situated on the valley floor of Anderson Valley on sedimentary soils. The biodynamic gardens and vineyards at Filigreen Farm are devoted to the valley’s specialty, Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris grapes, and the Intent Pinot comes off their Home Block, as winemaker Patrick Callagy notes, a parcel with some of the oldest vines on the property. This unique estate is Demeter certified biodynamic, no mean feat and this wine shows the quality and life from these carefully farmed vines. This latest Pinot from Intent, a new label for me, saw a gentle non intervention native yeast fermentation and about 15 months in neutral oak, with just 61 cases produced, all unfined/unfiltered. Coming in at just 13.3% alcohol, this Intent Pinot shows off the vintage with exceptional fresh detail, even ripeness and vibrancy giving an array of cherry, crushed spiced raspberry, plum and earthy/tart cranberry fruits along with black tea, sassafras, baking spices, blood orange and light herb notes. The mouth feel is very alluring here, with air and time in the glass and this ruby/garnet Pinot just gets more complex with each sip, adding a rose petal, floral dimension too, impressive and certainly worth searching out Pinot lovers that want to explore an up and coming producer and are cool climate enthusiasts.
Patrick Callagy, a California Culinary Academy trained chef and turned winemaker, has launched his personal project Intent Wines with a solid set of initial offerings including a Pinot Gris, a Syrah and this lovely Home Block Pommard Clone Pinot Noir. Patrick met winemaker Eric Sussman in 2002, post graduation, when Sussman started his now famous Radio Coteau winery, helping out with that harvest and after a few years of extremely long hours, Callagy’s curiosity/persistence paid off when he became Radio Coteau’s first employee, gaining loads of wine growing and winemaking experience. Fast forward a few years, Patrick started the Intent brand with the 2017 vintage, bravely starting his own label in 2020, considering the difficulty of getting stuff done in the middle of the COVID pandemic, which Callagy says, it’s been challenging year to say the least, but one he survived and we are rewarded with these cool new wines. The focus here is to source from, organically grown, or as Patrick explains, correctly farmed sites, which is where his Intent name comes from. I’m excited to see how this naturally styled wine develops, as it gets so good with air and pleases the senses with silken texture and lingering red fruits and I am looking forward to popping the cork on Patrick’s Pinot Gris, especially as I find the Anderson Valley provides an Alsatian quality to the grapes here that is very compelling.
($42 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive