2014 Senses, Pinot Noir, Tanuda Ridge Vineyard, Sonoma Coast.
One of the up and coming stars of the Sonoma Coast is Senses Wines, with superstar winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown crafting this small production artisan wines, it is amazing set of 2014 wines they’ve put out, especially as the owners are a group of three school friends in their early thirties! I met up with Chris Strieter, who has been involved a few wine projects and shared his experiences and tasted me through his lineup of stunning Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines, all from top sites in the real west and ultra cool Sonoma Coast, they have taken a big portion of the famed B.A. Thieriot Vineyard as well, you’d know this prized Chardonnay vineyard if you’d had Littorai version! The Senses Chards are lovely, I especially admired the basic Sonoma Coast, but the huge potential lies in their mentioned Thieriot and the blockbuster Charles Heintz Vineyards offerings, though my favorite wine of the 2014 Senses was their gorgeous Tanuda Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir, this was a wine that stopped me in my tracks with it’s incredible focus and elegance, it is complex, yet wonderfully easy to fall in love with! The 2014 Tanuda starts with dark fruit, wild spices, pretty and sultry smoky elements with hints of rosewater and violets leading to a vivid and transparent palate of layered cherry, plum, black raspberry and a bright fruit bowl background with red peach, candied blood orange and tart currants along with cinnamon stick, cedar, anise and tea spices. The wood is perfect melded in and everything is taught and vital throughout. This is lavish and sexy Pinot Noir, though lifted and vibrant with lacy acidity and silky textures, this Pinot should drink great for the next 6 to 8 years without question, Thomas Rivers Brown of Schrader and Rivers-Marie (his own label) has done a masterful job with these wines, I recommend chasing them down, as they are still under the radar, though not for long I suspect! I was skeptical when I first heard of these guys, but this wine blew me away, if this is what the youth of today is working on now, the future looks even better and is in good hands.
($50 Est.) 94 Points, grapelive
