Me too. Not to mention Limerick Lane.
And the dogs name…
Chris??
Guys, I’m getting a little worried. Is Chris, you know… well, does he have a life outside of WB? 
Life got in the way. Thanks for asking. I’ll post in the next day or two.
My dog is named Kita. We got her when she was three years old, and she’s almost 11 now. She’s our second Samoyed - they’re amazing dogs.
VISIT TO COPAIN, AUGUST 25, 2017
For those who haven’t been there, Copain has a spectacular winemaking facility and tasting room in the Russian River Valley, with an amazing view of and across the river valley, including to the splashy new Williams Selyem winery. They host tastings by appointment, easily booked on VinoVisit, and they have a group of cheerful employees there to attend to each visitor. In addition to getting to taste ten wines, they also served us a plate of premium salumi and cheeses, most notably a Brabander from the Netherlands that was our favorite cheese we have had in a good while.
Chardonnays.
2015 Les Voisins Chardonnay. This is their mid-priced appellation blend chardonnay form Anderson Valley. Very pale in color, with good lemon and orange energy, peach pit, and a dusty finish. Very light, clean and crisp in a Chablis type style.
2013 Laureles Grade Chardonnay. Copain’s Laureles Grade is such a gem, and while not cheap (I think mid $40s with my club discount), it’s a great value for the quality in chardonnay from anywhere, for my tastes. This has beautiful citrus, veering from the yellow in lemon and grapefruit into a touch of green lime. It has hints of seashell and rocks, white spices and flowers. So pretty and pure. 12.4% alcohol, and showing no heaviness, burn or oak.
2015 DuPratt Chardonnay. From a vineyard in the Anderson Valley at 1600’ elevation surrounded by forest. The vineyard is mostly zinfandel or primitivo, planted by Italian immigrants, but it has a small plot of chardonnay and Copain is smart/fortunate enough to source grapes from that plot. This has lemon, tart pineapple, green apple and cool river stones. A little more reserved than the Laureles Grade, but perhaps that is just two years of difference in age.
Pinots.
2014 Les Voisins Pinot. From vineyards in the Deep End of Anderson Valley. Darker purple berries, minerals and herbal leaves. The finish turns a little dusty. A solid, food-friendly pinot at a reasonable (mid $30s?) price.
2014 Wendling Pinot. Pitty dark cherry, high toned, with orange peel echoing on the long finish.
2014 Wendling Pinot Whole Cluster. It’s always surprised me a bit that Wells did not experiment with whole cluster more (or maybe he has experimented with it but just not cared for it?). Well, here is an experiment, and I loved it. This I believe was 65% whole cluster, and it really worked for me. You could smell the stems, and they lend a spiciness to the dark fruit. The wine has much more complexity than the regular Wendling, and a more tannic finish that suggests this will age well. More please.
2010 Kiser En Haut Pinot. Dark cherry and blueberry, perfume, a hint of vanilla, and a pitty finish. This is a very good wine, but as their flagship vineyard, I might have hoped for some more spice and complexity. Perhaps that is still to come with age?
2013 Wentzel Solstice Pinot. Another small special project from Wells, from a block within the Wentzel Vineyard. This was a bright, exuberant wine, with a much more flamboyant personality than the typical Copain pinot. Pine needles, juicy red cherry, baking spice, orange and orange peel on the finish. This, along with the Wendling Whole Cluster, stole the show for the reds.
Syrah.
2014 Les Voisins Syrah. Dark purple berries and plums, violets, this is intense without being heavy. I liked it.
2013 Baker Ranch Syrah. This pushes the AFWE limits at 12.5% alcohol. This is lean, gamey, leathery syrah, with little fruit, alcohol or oak. This will be a hit with those who prefer the most savory, cool climate boundary of California syrah. For me, I respected it without really loving it.
I’ll post a few pictures below of Copain, as well as a gratuitous photo of me and Kita a few hours beforehand in the markedly different climate 20 miles away in Bodega Bay.
VISIT TO LIMERICK LANE WINERY, AUGUST 25, 2017.
I had never visited, or even tasted, Limerick Lane wines until that day, but we wanted to try somewhere we hadn’t been before, and what a smashing success this proved to be. Stylistically, these wines reminded me of Carlisle, in that they managed to bring you ripe fruit that straddles the purple/red spectrum, yet without veering into pruniness or heat, and with judiciously modest use of oak.
2016 Rose of Syrah. It was probably around 90 degrees by our 3:00 visit, on the heels of a long lunch on a Healdsburg patio with variable shade (by long, I don’t mean that we had a big lunch with a bunch of courses - the service just took forever), so it’s possible the circumstances caused us to love this wine too much. But wow, did it knock our socks off. Bright, juicy, joyous, with fresh strawberry and orange, juicy acids lead to a clean light finish. So much energy to this wine. You couldn’t wipe the smile off our faces as we tried this. This is definitely not the same as traditional Provence roses, but wow is it great in its own way.
We took home a bottle, and drank it on the patio the next day in Bodega Bay with clam chowder, crab cakes and crab cocktail from Spud Point, and it was just as lovely. I need to loop back and get more of this. Not cheap at $30, but if you get over the “but it’s rose” and “there are good roses for half the price from somewhere else” thing, this is terrific wine for $30.
2014 Syrah Grenache. This had dark fruit that was somehow bright in personality (sounds contradictory, but just try to imagine if you can what I’m trying to say). 14.4% alcohol. Not complex, but it had good balance and energy to it.
2014 Estate Zinfandel. This was firmly in the Carlisle camp. Juicy wild red and purple berry fruit, which reminds you of picking berries in the forest. Zesty finish. This seems like it will develop very well with age.
2014 Rocky Knoll Zinfandel. Floral high-toned purple berry nose. More concentrated fruit on the palate, mineral, and good cleansing acids on the finish. Admirable for the modest use of oak.
2015 1910 Block Zinfandel. This had a more savory nose, with sage and mineral taking more of the forefront. Deep, fresh berry fruit, particularly spicy and complex for a zin, and totally balanced. We took a few bottles of this home for a special occasion.
2015 1023. 1023 is the name of the wine - there was some good explanation, but I forgot to write it down. This is a blenc of 52% zin, 45% syrah, and a splash of grenache. To me, this veered into more the crowd/critic pleasing side of the spectrum, with prominent new oak giving a vanilla dimension and creamy texture to the wine. I think many people would dig this, but I didn’t care for it as much, especially compared to how thrilling the other offerings had been.
They have, I think, a twice yearly mailing list with no club or commitment, and I was quite happy to put my name on it (because, you know, I need to buy more wine). Looking forward to seeing these wines in the future.
Photos below.
Bonus note. I was surprised and excited to see the 2015 A Rafanelli Zinfandel on the small but very good wine list at Terrapin Creek in Bodega Bay, which is a delightful fresh-food restaurant in a cute little house. I think it was only $62 or so on the list, probably only slightly above retail, if you could even find it. It wasn’t really the ideal pairing for what we were ordering, but I’m one of those who tends to pick the wine that excites me over the wine that’s the most perfect pairing.
This was a very young wine that will benefit from probably 5-10 years or more of age. This is more in the Ridge style of zin. Deep, intense, dark purple berry, some graphite and a bit of spice. Good acid and tannin structure at the end. This is still a primary wine that should unfold in a great way with age, but it’s plenty tasty now anyway.
FWIW 1023 is the address of the winery.
Were able to taste with Jake? Great guy and is really hitting it out of the park with his wines.
That’s pretty much how I feel about Jake’s wines. There’s plenty of ripe fruit, but they do not veer into heaviness.
The Syrah Rosé this year is fantastic. Blew through a couple mags of it pretty quickly. A Rosé with structure and verve.
Chris, thanks for all the great wine notes, very much appreciated. For all the folks visiting Sonoma County wine country, Terrapin Creek in Bodega Bay is a restaurant you really need to try. Great menu, excellent service, beautifully prepared food. Casual but classy, its our favorite restaurant in the county. Out of the way in Bodega Bay for sure but they have quietly earned a Michelin Star for the past 5 years. Added plus is Terrapin is owned by by the nicest couple ever.
Tom
Thanks for the notes, particularly timely for the Limerick Lane release on Sept. 18.
Thanks for the update on the notes!!
Nope, haven’t reached out. He doesn’t need our help. LOL. I’ll ping him later in the year and see if he can get creative.
Chris, excellent notes. Great trip.
I really like the '15 A Raf. It will age beautifully, but I though it was already delicious.
Great notes Chris. I love the LL wines, but find the attached number codes (1910, 1023) somewhat confusing. Offering coming out shortly.
Counselor, a great close to your trip, to include the photos. Thanks for sharing all of it and the work you did to report it all back here. To further the topic on a few points…
I do like how the 2013 Laureles Chard is tasting these days. It’s melded nicely together in the past 2 years and like you, I think this is a great expression. Have not opened any of the 15 Dupratt yet so appreciate your impression. As for the 2010 Kiser En Haut PN, good to see that snuck into your tasting. I drank one of the two weekends ago at Gulfstream here in the OC, and it showed fantastic. That wine is really humming along and the balance and flavors in that, along with the remaining structure, are excellent. I liked my bottle more than I think you did yours, based on your TN above.