"Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com 95 Points
Sonoma’s Sensational 2021s
The 2021 Pinot Noir Hellenthal Old Shop Block is another searingly intense wine in this lineup of young Pinots. Accordingly, readers should be in no rush. Chalk, white pepper, incense, cedar, sweet pipe tobacco, blood orange and mint meld into a core of red-toned fruit. Bright acids and vibrant tannins give the wine its shape and overall drive. Drinking Window 2025 - 2033"
The mission at Ceritas is to craft single vineyard expressions of place through Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The sources for their fruit along the Sonoma Coast and westernmost Russian River Valley were carefully chosen for their winegrowing merits and also for their singularity. Each allows them the opportunity to craft balanced and distinct wines which will stand out on the dinner table, thier wines are reflective of the growing seasons and soils from which they came. In the vineyard sustainable farming practices are followed, dictated by observation and empiricism rather than by prescriptive farming.
All of their vineyard sites are either farmed bio-dynamically or are in the initial stages of being converted to biodynamic farming methods. They believe that biodynamic farming methods, and focused and site-specific attention, give the vines the greatest opportunity to experience each growing season, to respond accordingly, and ultimately to yield grapes with the unmistakable flavours and smells of their time and place.
John Raytek - "In the late 1970’s Gard Hellenthal and David Hirsch began looking for vineyards north of Cazadero in the hills facing the Pacific. After securing land just to the east of Hirsch Vineyards, Gard planted the original vines at Hellenthal Vineyards. Two plantings went in – Old Shop Block and Elliott. We are fortunate enough to be the only winery sourcing fruit from the oldest vines on the property, affectionately known as the Old Shop Block.
This site captivates us for several reasons. The soil is a mixture of fractured sandstone and highly decomposed sandstone soils, which provide ideal grounds for Pinot Noir. Most importantly, the wine bears forth-great earth concentration, bright red fruit, and lingering tannins. Second, these dry-farmed vines are home to the own-rooted Calera clone – the only own-rooted vines that Ceritas farms- which allows a direct translation from the soil to the vine."
Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com
John Raytek presented a stunning set of 2021s. The Pinots are brilliant across the board. Whole cluster inclusion is quite high, 60-80% on average, but the stem influence is so subtle and is mostly felt in the wine's salinity and energy rather than flavor profile, a tell-tale sign of a superior year. The 2021s spent 12 months in barrel and then a few months in tank. Chardonnay also stars in 2021. Like so many wines in this vintage, the Chardonnays need a ton of air to show at their best. Élevage for the Chardonnays is about 10-11 months in barrel and then 5-6 months in tank, depending on the year, prior to bottling. One of the recent changes here has been a move towards thicker-staved 300-liter barrels for the Chardonnays, which help preserve heat in fermentation and then reduce contact with oxygen during aging. As a complement to the more neutral wood imprint in general, new oak usage is up a touch. Raytek has made his name with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, but Cabernet Sauvignon will soon play a bigger role in this expanding range. Readers will want to take a close look at the 2020 Colima Cabernet Sauvignon for a hint of what is coming down the road. This is an exciting set of wines from top to bottom.
