TN: Sojourn Pre-Release Pinots and Cabs w/Craig Haserot

SOJOURN PRE-RELEASE PINOTS AND CABS W/CRAIG HASEROT - Zibbibo Restaurant, Palo Alto, California (1/21/2010)

Craig came down from Sonoma to share with us the Sojourns that are about to be released next week, as well as a couple that won’t be released until the fall and a barrel sample. (We also did a Corton tasting dinner that same evening that Craig organized, and I’ll report on that separately.)

As usual, this is a really nice lineup of Pinots. The one that didn’t show as well as it had a few months back, and seemed unusually shut down and short on the palate last night, was the Gap’s Crown. Craig reports that he and his team are looking into other bottles of that today to see if they can figure out what’s going on. The Sangiacomo was my favorite of the bunch, but the Rodgers Creek was also showing well now, and is more Burgundian in profile. It was probably the favorite of the group last night. The Cabs are also looking good, and the '07 Home Ranch continues to be very tasty and accessible already.

Craig Haserot on the right

Pinots

• 2008 Sojourn Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Dark cherry red color with pale meniscus; focused, spicy cherry, black raspberry nose; tight, spicy cherry, black raspberry palate with good acidity; medium finish (90 pts.)
• 2008 Sojourn Pinot Noir Rodgers Creek Vineyard Sonoma Coast - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Dark cherry red color with pale meniscus; hibiscus, floral, pine nose; tart cherry, hibiscus palate with a touch of green herb, and less noticeable tannins than the other '08 Sojourn Pinots. Accessible now and should drink well for the next 3 to 4 years. 91+ pts. (91 pts.)
• 2008 Sojourn Pinot Noir Gap’s Crown Vineyard Sonoma Coast - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Dark cherry red color; nice black raspberry, blue fruit, plum nose; tight berry, black fruit palate with mid-palate dropout; short finish. (This one’s a real puzzler at the moment, as the aromatics are lovely, and it was quite good when I tasted it some months back, but right now it is shy on the palate to the point of a suddenly disappearing mid-palate. Craig Haserot reports that the '07 Gap’s Crown went through a similar process of development, not really coming on and showing well on the palate until several months after their other '07s [but fortunately in time for Laube’s tasting for WS]. One hopes this bottle will similarly develop.) (87 pts.)
• 2008 Sojourn Pinot Noir Sangiacomo Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
  Medium dark cherry red color with pale meniscus; floral, cinnamon, deep cherry nose; tasty, spicy cherry, cinnamon, mineral palate with a touch of green herb, nicely balanced; medium-plus finish 92+ pts. (92 pts.)

Cabs

• 2007 Sojourn Cabernet Sauvignon Home Ranch - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Valley
  Dark red violet color; nice cassis, raspberry, berry, black cherry nose with a touch of chocolate; black cherry, berry, baked berry, black raspberry palate with sweet tannins; medium finish (drink from 2010-2015) (91 pts.)
• 2007 Sojourn Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain - USA, California, Napa Valley, Howell Mountain
  Pre-release (Fall 2010 release) - dark red violet color; eucalyptus, mint, camphor, menthol nose; camphor, menthol, berry, cassis palate; medium-plus finish (91 pts.)
• 2008 Sojourn Cabernet Sauvignon Georges III - USA, California, Napa Valley, Rutherford
  Barrel sample - dark red violet color; menthol, blueberry, blackberry, eucalyptus nose; tasty, blackberry, eucalyptus, berry, menthol palate; medium-plus finish 92-94 pts. (92 pts.)

Posted from CellarTracker

Thanks for the notes, Richard. Looks like Sojourn will continue to be a regular buy.

I have really enjoyed the 2007 pinots that I have tasted from a friends cellar.

How is the food at Zibbibo? My brother in law was the chef there quite a few years ago before he and my sister moved to the foothills.

I liked the Rodgers Creek very much. For me it was the clear “winner”. The Sangiacomo (aka Perry Como) was my #2 probably three points lower than the RC.

The food was interesting. It was my first time there. When I first looked at the menu I was worried; more like a sports bar than “fine” dining. We ordered everything family style and I will say it was very good and paired well with the Sojourns as well as both white and red Cortons.

I wasn’t feeling very well yesterday but this great body of people cheered me up alot. Thanks Craig for setting this up and thanks to all of you for the wonderful Cortons.

Richard, did you try the 2007s at this stage and how would you compare the two? I am a big fan and loved the 2007 SC Pinot. As an example, how do you feel it stacked up against the 2008? How about the Sangiocomo?
Thanks in advance.

We drank this with friends at The Grocery in Brooklyn tonight. Oh baby! Everyone loved it. Plenty of cherries. Great at pop and pour. Even better at 60 minutes.

Fun Sojourn tasting in Palo Alto and a very educational Corton tasting (the reds especially) after the Sojourn’s. Richard, thanks for the great notes as usual.

Subsequently we opened 6 random bottles of the 2008 Gap’s Crown bottling to check on the wine, including bottles today at Frank Murray’s Falltacular event in the OC. The wine was consistently drinking on a very high note - the bottle we opened on Thursday I can chalk up to “oh well, it’s wine…”

On an Fyi, great Pinot Report scores were released today on our Sojourn wines (and others).

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Once again, I really enjoyed the opportunity to taste the current line-up of Sojourn Wines with Craig.

Zibibbo in Palo Alto really treated us well - lots of space, great service and very nice food - brought out at the right pace.

My notes from the four 2008 Pinots and the 2007 Home Ranch Cabernet are as follows:

• 2008 Sojourn Cellars Pinot Noir, Sonoma Coast
Slightly lighter in color; very pleasant earthy / spicy nose. Good level of grip and acid – in line with what I would expect at this time. The ’08 Sonoma Coast is a bigger and more complex wine than the ’06 and ’07 Sonoma Coast appellation wines were at this point in their development. Nice cherry fruit flavors come right through to the front. According to Craig, this wine is comprised of five blocks within three separate vineyards: Fedrick vineyard along Lakeville Hwy, Windsor Oaks Vineyard, and the famed Sangiacomo vineyard along Robert’s Road in the Petaluma Gap. Opening up nicely in the glass with just a little time. Excellent wine.

• 2008 Sojourn Cellars Pinot Noir, “Rodgers Creek Vineyard”, Sonoma Coast
Slightly reserved nose – but much more open on the palate. Berries and cherries along with some slight herbal notes. Nice structure – struck me as the most “Burgundian” of the ’08 Sojourn Pinots at this point. From Sojourn: “The vineyard is very well suited for growing Pinot Noir, sitting high on a ridge that takes the full brunt of wind and thick fog rolling in from the Pacific. The vines are grown in light, chalky soils on steep inclines, causing natural vine stress and resulting in a concentrated, yet balanced wine.” This should continue to evolve into a very nice wine.

• 2008 Sojourn Cellars Pinot Noir, “Gap’s Crown Vineyard”, Sonoma Coast
Pretty tea and perfume nose on this wine. Showing precision and focus. Slightly leaner than the other ’08 Sojourn Pinots – but with very nice fruit. Showed elements of both Sonoma Coast and Burgundy. From Sojourn: “The Gap’s Crown Vineyard is an extraordinary site high above the valley floor. In 2008, the cool fog of the Petaluma Gap enabled the Gap’s Crown fruit to hang through the early September heat, maturing slowly and evenly.” Over time, some tasters commented that the wine seemed to be closing down in the glass instead of opening up – I agreed. Craig kindly poured the remnants of a different bottle of Gap’s Crown that had been opened at a previous event – and the second bottle was much better. Much rounder mouthfeel, silky tannins, slight hints of chocolate. A very impressive showing by the second bottle.

• 2008 Sojourn Cellars Pinot Noir, “Sangiacomo Vineyard”, Sonoma Coast
Soaring, beautiful aromatics right from the start tell you this wine is something special. This is a flashy, sexy wine – yet it keeps everything in balance. Wonderful flavor profile. Big and rich – but not over the top. Recognizable as a Sojourn Sangiacomo to those who have the good fortune to buy and taste this wine year in and year out. Elegant. I would have liked to have taken more detailed notes on this wine, but I just kept sitting there and saying “WOW!”

• 2007 Sojourn Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon, “Home Ranch Vineyard”, Sonoma Valley
This marks the third vintage from this younger vineyard in Craig’s backyard. Previous vintages have had distinct blueberry notes to them – and the 2007 continues that hallmark, though in a less intense way. Starts with a blueberry and black cherry nose; follows with cassis and sweet tannins on the palate. Accompanied by additional flavors and complexity not found in previous vintages of Home Ranch - perhaps from the maturation of the vines. A lovely, easy-to-drink Cabernet.

Alex,
I did try the '07s at a similar stage. I think the '08 SoCo and '07 SoCo were quite similar at this stage. I think the '08 Sangiacomo is noticeably stronger than the '07 was at this point.

Mark,
Thanks for adding your notes.

Craig,
Thanks for the update on the '08 Gaps Crown, and congrats on the Pinot Report scores.

The wife and I tried the line-up this afternoon at an event in Manhattan Beach. What a treat – although I was already a “cheerleader” for Sojourn Pinots and tried these in the barrel last Summer, the finished product was superb.

I think the 08 Sangiacomo may even be better than the 07; those that tried it would agree that it had a nose of baking spice, and though it was tasting absolutely beautiful, some time in the bottle would probably not hurt a bit.

The Rodger’s creek is a great expression of Pinot, and even the old world lovers would like that one. The Gaps Crown was my least favorite of the four, but don’t take that as criticism as it was a stellar wine. The Sonoma Coast is a bit bigger and spicier than the 07 and got better with some air.

Now, the Cabs. Craig broke out some of the 05 Home Ranch Cab and it was a floral, beautiful expression of Cali-Cab. The 07 had the notes of blueberry reported by others, and will be great in time, but the 05 was singing. I also thoroughly enjoyed the 06 Mountain Terraces Reserve.

Overall, great job Craig and Erich.

My wife and I attended the Manhattan Beach party as well. As a bonus, it was held at the Tin Roof Bistro which just happens to be our favorite new haunt in MB (we live about 500 yards from its front door). It was a nice event and good to meet the Haserots. The '07s were the first Sojourns for me. I’ve quickly become a fan of these wines, especially the '07 Gap’s Crown and Sonoma Coast Pinots.

I didn’t take any notes, but the Pinot of the night for me was the Sangiacomo. The Gap’s Crown seemed a little rough around the edges but I’m sure will do better with age and air. Really enjoyed the new Rodgers bottling as well. My wine of the night, however, was the '05 Home Ranch Cab. I hadn’t planned on buying any of the '07, but the '05 was, as Bruce said, singing. I went back for a couple of additional tastes of that one. An unexpected treat since we were coming mainly for the pinots.

We brought a couple of guests including the owners of my off site locker facility and each of them became new fans (and owners) of Sojourn wines. Bruce, sorry to have missed the chance to meet you in our home town. Hope the drive home wasn’t too bad. We just walked.

Sorry to have missed meeting you too; the drive wasn’t bad - took less than an hour. Glad you enjoyed the wines!

Alright, now I feel bad that I missed this. Although I did have a nice 70 mile bike ride…at least now I know I need to buy more Sojourn in '08.

Peter - Great to meet you last weekend, good fun at the tasting and thanks for the kind words.

Ken - all of us need to be careful of having too many Rudman’s in one place at one time … I believe the quota for any location is still one.