It was my time to host our monthly wine dinner and I decided to go with a 10 year retrospective of the 2004 Pinot Noir vintage at Williams Selyem.
I thought this would be an interesting theme as in my experience Williams Selyem Pinots demand age (they can be a bit monolithic in their youth) and 10-15 years can be a sweet spot. Additionally the wide range of benchmark vineyards across the key Pinot Noir producing regions would provide an interesting look at California terroir. My understanding is the winemaking approach is very similar across the different bottlings, so we had a good opportunity to see how the influence of the individual vineyards.
2004 has a reputation as a hot dry vintage in California. Bud break was very early and harvest was also very early during a heat spike. That said, for Pinot hang time was fairly typical, much of the vintage was under moderate temperatures and I suspect a lot was harvested before the heat spike. Alcohols of these wines were all between 13.8-14.2, not particularly high in Californian terms, and acidity levels were good with pHs all between 3.3-3.6.
We started with a 2007 Chardonnay, finished with a 2004 Port, and also had a pretty extraordinary flight of Burt Williams era wines as a reference point.
On the whole I was very pleased with how these wines showed. For me Williams Selyem is, and remains, a benchmark producer of Pinot in California. They really speak of a sense of place, and to me point to a style that is uniquely Californian in a good way.
All of the 2004s showed quite young, and I suspect this lineup will be better at 15 or even 20 years.
There were quite a few wines on display so my notes got a little shorter towards the end. A house style definitely showed through across the wines, especially in the high-toned floral noses, red fruit, apple skin and long acid profiles. The RRV wines probably showed off as the most distinct and big boned of the wines.
I ended up scoring the wines in a fairly narrow range, which is not to say they were all similar, but of similarly high quality but with significantly different expressions.
Starter White
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2007 Williams Selyem Chardonnay Heintz - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Bright gold color, almost entirely to the pale rim.
Blowsy aromas of honeysuckle, ripe stone fruit and expensive oak.
Mouth filling ripe stonefruit – Anjou pear and peaches - lemon curd (thanks Izzy) and honey. Great acid signature keeps the size in check, although some heat sneaks through on the end of the palate. Great length. A very good wine although a touch on the big side to warrant a higher score from me. (90 pts.)
Burt Williams Flight
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1997 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Coastlands Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Mid to dark burgundy color, crystal clear throughout.
Intense nose of cola nut, wild flowers and macerated strawberries.
Crunchy red fruits with crushed red pepper. Good intensity and length. Heat definitely shows through on the finish and the >15% alcohol is unusually for a Williams Selyem. I wonder if the ripeness of the fruit got away from them a little on this wine. There’s a lot to like, and this can go on for many years, but I doubt the heat will ever dissipate. (90 pts.)
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1991 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Summa Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Mid Burgundy color, vibrant throughout to a thin clear meniscus.
Room filling nose of a field of flowers, sassafras and baking spices.
Dense structure with lots of everything - cherry fruit, cranberry juice, umami (dried mushrooms) and spice. Great acid throughout the extraordinary length. Substantial tannin on the back end. A good bottle of this wine, like this one, still has plenty of legs left and will definitely see older age yet. For me this particular wine should be considered a Californian classic. (95 pts.)
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1986 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Sonoma County - USA, California, Sonoma County
Redish brown color, pale orange at the rim.
Beautiful earthy nose of freshly turned soil, worn leather and violets by the boatload.
Lean but long on the palate, with tart red fruits, great apple juice acidity and a touch of red spices. A fine wine and remarkable showing from the lowest wine in their portfolio at 28 years of age. I thought it developed a touch of vinegar by the end of the night, so wouldn’t be keeping this any longer. Universally loved around the table and the one wine of the night that could easily be mistaken for burgundy. (93 pts.)
Other than Sonoma Flight
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2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Ferrington Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley
Dark ruby to a clear rim.
High toned nose of red fruits and blue flowers.
Juicy on the palate with a mix of fruits across the red to black fruits spectrum. Primarily cherries and blackberries with the typical and red apple character of Anderson valley pinot. The apple continues over to the great acid profile which leaves a lasting impression. This got better and better with air. A top performance from a vineyard bottling that is pretty inconsistent from my experience. (92 pts.)
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2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Vista Verde Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast, San Benito County
Dark ruby color.
Perfumed nose of roses, fresh strawberries and sea spray.
On the palate ripe strawberries, cherry cola and amaro. Good grip on the end palate. This develops in the glass and gets more savory and pretty over time. A nice showing from Vista Verde, probably the best I recall from a vineyard that is one of my least favorite Selyems. (92 pts.)
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2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Weir Vineyard - USA, California, North Coast, Yorkville Highlands
Prominent VA on the nose.
Very ripe, moving toward blue fruits. A weird wine that is most likely flawed. NR (flawed)
Sonoma Coast Flight
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2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Peay Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Dark burgundy color.
Intense and savory nose of star anise, red fruits and polished leather.
Complete palate of gravenstein apple, tart cherries, chewy rhubarb and dried shitake mushrooms. Strong acid profile with firm tannins on the finish. This one has quite a bit left in the tank. (92 pts.)
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2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Coastlands Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Aniseed, roses, macerated cherries and a touch of varnish on the nose.
On the palate, sweet and sour fruited with lots of maraschino cherry. Late tones of damp earth on the very long finish. A little blocky for me, but may need more time to come together. (91 pts.)
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2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Precious Mountain - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast
Dark Crimson color.
Cerebral nose that speaks to a whole cluster element, very floral (roses in bloom) with brown spices, and eucalyptus.
Dense, smooth and lush on the palate with raspberry liqueur and bing cherries. Complex on the end palate with firm and structured tannins suggesting a lot of life left. (93 pts.)
Russian River Valley Flight
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2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Flax Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Dark Red color, impenetrable at the core.
Rich liquor aromas, with dried herbs, licorice and Chambord.
Very rich on the palate with licorice, sweet caramelized strawberries, plum and winter cranberries. Moves to show savory qualities of forest mushrooms and Chinese five spice on the end palate. Soft tannins, but the power of the wine will probably allow it to keep for a while younger. The RRV flight definitely showed a lot bigger, although not lesser quality than the other flights. (92 pts.)
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2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Bucher Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Very medicinal nose – like an old time pharmacy. Chinato/spiced wine character with lots of dried herbs over the dried and cooked red fruits.
Sweet and soft impression on the palate with black fruits, herbal tea and old fashioned cough medicine. This was a controversial wine on the night with some thought it corked or faulty (I had initially considered corked, but thought it not the case once the herbal elements started to shine and with none of the telltale signs of TCA for my palate). The least Pinot like of these wines, but a very unique wine that reminds me of a delicate amaro. As an interesting wine, I really loved this, as a Pinot Noir I could see one being disappointed. 92+ (92 pts.)
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2004 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Allen Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Mid burgundy color.
Savory nose of cooking spices, roses and a hint of peat.
The most closed of the wines on display tonight… very much hiding behind its structure. Fleshed out over time revealing sweet and tart fruit. Has real intensity without ever overpowering and I suspect a very fine wine lies in waiting. 92+. (92 pts.)
Port to end
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2004 Williams Selyem Port Mistral Vineyard - USA, California, Central Coast
Spirity nose of boysenberry and blackcurrant follows through to the palate. Too one note for me, although I suspect very young and this could turn into a treat with a lot of aging. I wasn’t inclined to drink more… and instead went back to the Pinots. (86 pts.)
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