Sonoma County Harvest Fair

Boy, there’s way too much wine there! Spent two out of the three days at the wine tasting and barely scratched the surface.
Official results

Top wines:

Davis Bynum Pinot Noir 2011 Jane’s Vyd Russian River Vly $40 Best of Class
Davis Family Pinot Noir 2011 Starr Ridge Russian River Vly $50 Gold
Estate 1856 Cabernet Bordeaux Blend 2010 Sonoma County $36 Best of Class, Sweepstakes
Estate 1856 Cabernet Bordeaux Blend 2011 Sonoma County $36 Double Gold
Matrix Zinfandel-Petite Sirah 2011 Russian River Vly $32 Best of Class
Rodney Strong Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 Brother’s Ridge Vyd Alexander Vly $75 Gold
Trentadue Petite Sirah Port 2011 Alexander Vly $25 Best of Class
Wellington Victory (Bordeaux) 2008 Sonoma County $60 Gold

Best bang for the buck:

Clos du Bois Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 Alexander Valley $28 Double Gold
Forchini Zinfandel 2011 Reserve Old Vine Dry Creek Vly $28 Gold
Mathis Grenache 2010 Sonoma Valley $30 Best of Class
Pedroncelli Sangiovese 2011 Alto Vyds Dry Creek Vly $16 Best of Class
Michael Pozzan Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 Sonoma County $15 Best of Class


Overall impression: A lot of big, sweet cherry wines with little varietal character to pick through to find the ones I liked. Work, work, work. lol

I really like the T.R. Elliott Pinots from O’Connell and Hallberg vineyards, and Ted is one hell of a nice guy. For both of the Harvest Fairs I’ve been to, I thought his wines stood out pretty well.