2022 Cattleya, Pinot Noir, The Goddess, West Sonoma Coast.
The Cattleya 2022 Pinots, by Bibiana González Rave-Pisoni are some of the wines of the vintage, and her rare The Goddess Pinot Noir from the West Sonoma Coast might be her best effort with this grape to date, it is a gorgeous and alluring wine of class and elegance with a depth of fruit and a sexy long finish. This single site, 100% de-stemmed, wine really unfolds in the glass wonderfully with aromas of spicy dark berries, intense florals, smoky wood and subtle earth lifting from the glass and seducing the senses before revealing a palate of black cherry, wild raspberry plum and blood orange fruits, along with briar and baking spice, rose petals, sassafras/cols, vanilla, sea spray and bergamot. There’s a Grand Cru Burgundy like presence, detailing and impact, similar to some Méo-Camuzet, Rousseau and or Anne Gros bottlings, but still very California in its nature, luxurious texture and dense fruit. I have always gravitated to Bibiana González Rave-Pisoni’s Syrah wines, first and foremost, which I have been following since her 2012 vintage, but her recent set of Chards and these Pinots are fantastic, do not miss a chance to try them. As mentioned before Bibiana, the hugely talented winemaker from Colombia, has come to California with an incredible array of experiences and degrees from universities in Bordeaux and Cognac. She has, as she remembers, pruned vines during ice-cold winters, trimmed shoots in sweltering summers, and tended to the vines that cling to the sheer slopes of Côte-Rôtie—first at Domaine Stéphane Ogier, then at Domaine Clusel-Roch. Adding that at the famed estates of Château Haut-Brion and La Mission Haut-Brion, she completed research for her finals thesis. She also notes that she had the privilege to work among other family-owned wine producers in Burgundy, Alsace, and Cognac, all of which helped her in her transition to California, where she has made a great collection of wines over the last decade.
Winemaker, Bibiana González Rave-Pisoni, says that her “The Goddess” Pinot Noir is the epitome of all that is feminine, and captures the regal character of the grape and a true sense of place, with its cool ultra west Sonoma Coast terror playing a key role. The Goddess, she continues, was crafted from the Gold Rock Vineyard, situated atop an interior ridge overlooking the Pacific Ocean. This wine, she explains, is a beautiful blend of clones 777 and 115 that was fermented with 100% indigenous yeast in open top stainless steel tanks, which look to have in my opinion highlight the purity and aromatic charms here. It also saw twice daily punchdowns that extracted what Bibiana calls a remarkable color, along with structural tannins and a depth of flavor. She employed her signature cold-soak through the end of fermentation in tank which she notes lasted 22 days in this vintage. Then, after primary fermentation was complete, the wine was then transferred to 85% new French oak barrels where in aged and matured for a full 18 months, after which it was settled in tank and bottled. Cattleya wines started back in 2011 and by 2015 Bibiana González Rave-Pisoni was named winemaker of the year the San Francisco Chronicle, as well as being spotted by the top wine critics in the world, scoring high 90s for almost everything she touched. She’s part of a serious power couple with her husband being Jeff Pisoni of the Pisoni Estate and former winemaker at Peter Michael, both driving forces in this new era of California wine. I really enjoyed catching up with Bibiana recently and tasting through her latest wines, all of which showed fantastically well and I highly recommend her newest efforts, including this one, the stellar The Temptress Russian River Chardonnay, the Syrahs (obviously), especially the rare Serine clone Pisoni Estate “The Reward” bottling, as well as her and Jeff’s 2023 Shared Notes Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon white Bordeaux style wine.
($125 Est.) 97 Points, grapelive