Featuring the one block of vines planted in 1982 that owner Paul Gerrie was able to salvage when he purchased the property a decade later – and a portion of which, due to phylloxera, was recently grafted to Dijon clones...
Featuring the one block of vines planted in 1982 that owner Paul Gerrie was able to salvage when he purchased the property a decade later – and a portion of which, due to phylloxera, was recently grafted to Dijon clones and thus temporarily taken out of commission – Cristom’s 2009 Pinot Noir Marjorie leads with deep if ineffable bittersweet floral perfume along with intimations of marine breeze and meat stock that presage the soy-like and mineral notes which, in mingling with lightly-confitured as well as distilled cherry on this wine’s polished palate, unleash helpless salivation and at least in my case lead to a compulsion to take the next sip. While it lacks quite the lift or subtly interactive complexity of its Jessie and Eileen counterparts, this finishes with sappy intensity and capital “U” umami, promising to perform terrifically at table over the next 12-15 years. - David Schildknecht