Pinot Noir

When thinking of outstanding Pinot Noir regions in the world, the Russian River Valley is one that critics continually highlight as a perfect example of the term terroir. That melding of soil, weather, climate, and topography, coupled with winemaking finesse.

The long, cool growing season in the Russian River Valley ripens this delicate, and often finicky, grape to perfection. At J Vineyards & Winery, all of our vineyards are certified sustainable and we employ vineyard management and winemaking techniques that minimally interact with the fruit so that the purest expression is evident in the final blend.

At harvest, as each row reaches optimum ripeness as tested daily by our Viticulturist and Winemaker, we hand-pick clusters during the cool nighttime hours when grapes are at their most balanced.

Careful hand-sorting in the winery ensures high quality. Pinot Noir grapes undergo three to five days of cold soaking to enhance fruit characters prior to fermentation. Both open- and closed-top fermentation tanks are utilized and the juice is punched down four times per day to control tannins and harshness while extracting precise color.

Gentle gravity-flow racking for all our wines further prevents the extraction of harsh tannins, and malolactic fermentation is completed in oak barrels. Our Pinot Noir ages nine to eleven months in 100% French oak barrels that have varying degrees of toast based on the winemaker’s specifications for that offering. Minimal fining retains pure fruit expression before the wine is bottled.