Doctor's Vineyard Pinot Noir

Love Charles Pinots. I do like the Doctors Vineyard from Santa Lucia slightly over the Russian River.

I hold these 5-6 years from bottling, not vintage before I start drinking his Pinots. Excellent Floral fruits, strawberries, pomegranate, dry cranberries, some blackberries, haunting raspberries, cherries, red cola/licorice, dry crushed rocks, fresh to dryish herbs, mid dark spice, vanillin, nutmeg, soft cinnamon, limestone marl, hints of fresh tobacco, wood shavings, red, dark, blue flowers framed in violets. Rainfall acidity with excellent tension, well balanced, nicely structured, floral and polished finish.

I kid you not, Charles Hendricks is likely the most underrated & under known Winemaker in Napa Valley.

If you have not had his wines, you are missing out on great wines & relative real value for Napa. He makes his own private higher end label-Hendricks, Hope & Grace and midway through the 14 vintage for; James Cole, Regusci & T-Vine.

There are few Winemakers that can make wines that drink well young & some that will age two decades plus stored correctly.

This Santa Lucia Doctor’s Vineyard is really good but, his private label Hendricks Pinot from Santa Lucia is off the charts. His 2008 Hendricks Pinot Noir is the highest rating I have ever given a Ca Pinot Noir, 98.

The 13 Doctor’s Vineyard is better than his 12 & is still a little early right now. It will improve over the next 5 years & hold there a couple of years before its gentle decline.

The nose reveals, ripe, well extracted & slightly baked; blackberries, stewed, deep, dark, black plum, black cherries, black raspberries, baked strawberries, dry pomegranate & cranberries with shades of blueberries. Dark spices, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon & vanilla, touch of savory meats, anise to black licorice, black tea, wet clay, steeped black tea, touch of herbs dominated with Rosemary, rich, black, earth, dry stones, dry crushed rocks, fresh tobacco, leather notes, volcanic minerals, limestone with bright, fresh & withering florals that are; dark, red, purple, blue mixed in violets and lavender.

The body is full, rich, lush and gorgeous. The structure, tension, length and balance are just hitting their good phase. It is simply a beautiful & complex Pinot Noir. Nicely extracted & slightly baked; blackberries, stewed, deep, dark, black plum, black cherries, black raspberries, baked strawberries, dry pomegranate & cranberries with more blueberries than the nose. Dark spices that bring palate heat, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon stick & vanilla, touch of savory meats, peppery notes, anise to black licorice, black tea, wet clay, steeped black tea, touch of herbs dominated with Rosemary, rich, black, earth, dry stones, dry crushed rocks, fresh tobacco, leather notes, volcanic minerals, limestone with bright, fresh & withering florals that are; dark, red, purple, blue mixed in violets and lavender. The acidity is very good & excellent at containing the slightly higher ABV. The long, complex finish is, well balanced fruit & earth, polished and will persist until dawn.

Photos of; Their Doctor’s Vineyard, one of my favorite paintings that used to hang behind the bar in their tasting room & now hangs in Charles’ house (it reminds me of a Jackson Pollock), Winemaker-Charles Hendricks and the front of their tasting room in downtown Yountville.

Lean. Lighter body. Clear at the edges. Interesting gamey rhubarb. High alc. unique.

Blackberry cherry licorice, cinnamon with light black earth that paints the back palate, strawberry, raspberry, hint of vanilla barrel toast with a soft mineral finish. The 10 vintage out of 375ml.

O Santa Lucia! A wine literally of monumental grace. Hope to get our hands on this beauty. Candied berry notes, dusty herbs and savory character evolve into lip-smacking palate-pleasing, round, lush and utterly hip sensations while tobacco spice and a hint of toffee round out a frighteningly long finish.

On a Charles Hendricks wines run here. An early finish at our rental property to attend our friends Christmas party.

Thought we’d check in on the 13. It’s still early on the Santa Lucia...needs another 3-5years in bottle.

The nose is; brooding, dark, rich, ripe, cassis. Well extracted blackberries, black cherries, black plum, plum, haunt blue fruits, black raspberries and poached strawberries. Notes of soft & elegantly, layered baking spices; cinnamon, clove & nutmeg. Dark chocolate, light caramel, understated dark spice, limestone, crushed, dry rocks, dark, moist, turned earth, just a whiff of dry herbs, dry top soil, wet clay, dark fruit cola, some black licorice with fresh & withering dark, red & blue florals framed in violets & lavender.

The body is, rich, ripe, ruby & full. There is sandy/dusty tannin presence. The structure & tension are still quite pronounced. The length & balance are good but, still require some evolution. It is round, elegant and slides nicely across the palate. Dark, rich, ripe, cassis. Well extracted blackberries, black cherries, black plum, plum, haunt blue fruits, black raspberries, dry cranberries, poached strawberries & in and out raspberries qualities. Notes of soft & elegantly, layered baking spices; cinnamon, clove & nutmeg. Dark chocolate, light caramel, understated dark spice, limestone, crushed, dry rocks, dark, moist, turned earth, dry herbs-bay leaf, a touch mint & eucalyptus, dry top soil, wet clay, dark fruit cola, some black licorice with fresh & withering dark, red & blue florals framed in violets & lavender. The acidity is round and holds the slightly higher alcohol in check. The nice, fruit finish is; plush, elegant, persistent, polished and then drifts into drier earthiness & dark spice. Better things ahead for this Charles Hendricks Cuvée in 3-5 years...picks up two score points.

Photos of, the exterior of the Hope & Grace tasting room in Yountville, their tasting salon, one of my favorite paintings that used to sit behind their tasting room bar but, now resides in Charles house and the vineyard that the fruit for this wine is sourced in Santa Lucia.

Still detoxing from Napa & Bordeaux Cabernet.

The nose reveals; dark cassis with some currants, some tarriness, hint of savory, smoked meats, black licorice to the core of anise, blackberries, black cherries, pomegranate extract, dry cranberries, some plum & blue fruits, dark fruit cola, liqueur notes, limestone minerals, some crushed rock powder, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, light vanilla, hints of sage & bay leaf, dark rich forest floor with dry leaves, dark fresh & withering flowers with a touch of bright red florals.

The body is on the fuller and richer side of Pinot. The wine is beautifully elegant across the palate. For a wine not coming from my best storage, this has held up nicely and showing far more complexity and integration than say a year ago. The structure & tension are still firm while the length and balance are approaching its high point. Dark cassis with some currants, some tarriness, hint of savory, smoked meats, black licorice to the core of anise, blackberries, black cherries, pomegranate extract, dry cranberries, some creamy black raspberries, mashed strawberries flesh, plum & blue fruits, raisins, dark fruit cola, liqueur notes, limestone minerals, some crushed rock powder, dark, long lasting spices with some heat, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, light vanilla, hints of sage & bay leaf, dark rich forest floor with dry leaves, dark fresh & withering flowers with a touch of bright red florals. The acidity is quite nice with well balanced fruit & earth finish that is persistent for minutes.

Photos of; Hope & Grace’s Stag’s Leap Vineyard, a very old vine which, I would say is 60 plus years old, Winemaker-Charles Hendricks willing to still do the heavy lifting and one of my favorite paintings that used to be in the Hope & Grace tasting room but, now is in Charles house.

Revisiting the Pinot that started me on this wine journey (not the same vintage though) and despite my palate changing and preference for lighter and natural wine, this super spicy Pinot is delivering beautiful cherries with some black tea and branches on the heated finish.

Time for a light red on still a warm night. This one out of 375ml. On the nose, sweet floral mid red fruits of; dark cherries, plum, blackberries & baked strawberries. Fruit liqueur notes, cola, vanilla, black licorice anise and fresh dark florals. The M body is clean & fresh. The palate fruits are; blackberries, dark cherries, plum, strawberries and dry cranberries. Soft, light spices, rose petals, vanilla, cola, hint of black licorice anise, touch of Christmas cake, dry top soil, crushed dry rock, limestone, really nice round acidity and a well polished rich finish with notes of liqueur. It's in a good spot out of 375 with several years ahead of good drinking. Photos of the Hope & Grace tasting room in Yountville. The top photo is one of my favorite art pieces. The caption reads, "Time is a great teacher, unfortunately it kills all it's pupils." Their tasting bar, the exterior of their tasting room and another favorite painting behind the bar in their event tasting room. Charles Hendricks (Winemaker) has taken it to his house. However, he is being pestered to bring it back. It's perfect behind the bar in the event tasting room.

If you haven't had Hope & Grace Pinot's, they are definitely worth acquiring. Nicely resolved dark & light red fruits, soft powdery chalkiness, elegant minerality and perfect acidity. Delicious!