I had stopped buying a few years after Burt retired as I thought the oak profile became heavier but had a 2004 Allen vineyard a couple of weeks ago, lovely, and no sense of undue oak.
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Hi Barry,
I’ve continued to sample various releases since Burt’s departure and have been somewhat pleased with the results even though the styles and profiles were different. Obviously, I still drink everything Burt made with joy and glee.
I remember times when I was staying at Burt’s Anderson Valley home {Morning Dew Ranch} and Mark Malpiede of WS would often come out and do vineyard inspections and converse with the vineyard manager about quality control and all. Burt was always impressed by that and welcomed their input.
I have to think some degree of consistency of quality has been maintained by Mark overseeing the winemaking and vineyard management, at least up until a few years ago as I do not know what influence he has presently.
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Allen now is making its own wine from the same vineyards that supplied Burt. They are more like the older Williams Selyem wine. I am not sure if any 2023 is available on the web site. They do have a mailing list.
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Extracted from a thread just posted; Dinner with my sweetie and 2009 Cristal and 1994 Williams Selyem Allen Vineyard Pinot Noir
1994 WILLIAMS SELYEM ALLEN VINEYARD RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY PINOT NOIR- decanted 1/2 hour; the light grainy strawberry color gave pause as to how much the wine may have also faded, but once we dove in and got the aromatics and taste profile, we were once again delighted to have this treasure in front of us; aromas of nice and spicy strawberry and red raspberry continued on to be joined by a sprinkle of cinnamon to make for a delicious taste experience; it was medium bodied, light in weight and surprisingly had an extended finish featuring the spice and cinnamon, mindful of home made apple sauce; also surprisingly, it seems to gain momentum and get better, more expressed over an hour; this was definitely the lightest and mildest 1994 Allen I’ve ever had and I’m thinking Burt would have been especially pleased as this release was one of his favs.
Cheers,
Blake
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2015 vista verde. One of our favorites. Still has more years in it. Nice balance. Long finish. Good dark fruit that’s not heavy. Held up to and did not overpower. A wonderful drink
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Extracted from a thread just posted: 4 wines tasted blind at dinner: 2016 Cristal, 2020 Gufffens-Heynen Macon-Pierreclos, 1990 Scavion Bric del Fiasc Barolo and 1992 Williams Selyem RRV Zinfandel
1992 WILLIAMS SELYEM RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY ZINFANDEL- blind, my bring, recognized, decanted 3+ hours with occasional gentle swirling and lots of sediment thrown even though stood up for 8 hours; following its cloudy dark red purple color came super inviting aromas of ripe, talc laden blackberry with a touch of blueberry at the end which was also true once tasted; the fruit profile was expansive and in no way did it resemble a 34 year old wine; spice, cola and pepper accents embellished the flavor and the tactile pleasure meter hit the high on the dial with its soft and smooth texture; it was a wowzer wine and truly an amazing experience, one that I’ve enjoyed numerous times over the past 2 decades, some of which were with Burt who did not include the vineyard source on the label, Martinelli’s Jackass Hill, due to Leno Martinelli’s decision to discontinue Burt’s allotment in favor of making more for themselves.
The abv is 15.6% and the fill was almost to the cork.
Cheers,
Blake
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Love it! Had this 4-5yrs ago and it was one of those memorable wines as it changed my perspective on Zinfandel. A couple years later I had to take a pic of it on the wall at W-S
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It was clear, the other 3 guys who tasted this on this night were greatly impressed, especially since we traditionally drink red Burgundy, Barolo, Tuscan, Rhone and Bordeaux and very little new world which is usually
Cab or a Cab blend. None had ever had it before.
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Extracted from a thread just posted: Another dinner with a good friend during his re-visit to SB with 2014 Delamotte BdB and 1997 Williams Selyem Hirsch Pinot Noir
1997 WILLIAMS SELYEM HIRSCH VINEYARD SONOMA COAST PINOT NOIR- served blind to the others; usually, i decant these wines if only for a few minutes, but in this case, i just pulled the cork and left it sitting upright for an hour; had I done so, I might have pulled another bottle as this was certainly displaying atypical characteristics; the color was a cloudy dark red purple and the nose included dried as in raisiny blueberry, plum, fig and black currant which made up most of the taste profile and being on the sweet side; it had a viscous texture and a long, sweet finish; I’ve had quite a few bottles of this release in the last few years and all have been really good and much more youthful, vibrant and featuring spicy and cinnamon accented red raspberry along with the blueberry and dark fruit; as it was, this seemingly got better and more drinkable and we came close to finishing the bottle.
Cheers,
Blake
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The guy looking through the glass is amazing!
Extracted from a thread just posted; Another stellar dinner with my sweetie to celebrate her with 2006 Cristal and 1997 Williams Selyem Precious Mountain Pinot Noir
1997 WILLIAMS SELYEM PRECIOUS MOUNTAIN SONOMA COAST PINOT NOIR- my notes for the 1996 were amazingly close to those for this bottle and I’m including some almost verbatim; this was maybe as good as any Burt made wine I’d ever had which includes 1996 version and the 1995 Summa in mag among others; I expected it to be good, but what we got once again, was from another world; the fill was high neck and the color was a grainy medium red purple and the nose and taste profile was replete with cinnamon, spice and talc laden blueberry and red and black raspberry; it was full bodied, had layered depth and complexity, a soft and velvety texture and a long, outstanding finish that sealed the deal; again and as with the Cristal, it was one of the best ever in every way a wine can be evaluated and I responded with heart felt deep appreciation and gratitude for all of its gifts. Had he tasted this bottle, Burt would have been ecstatic and sporting that wry, corner mouth smile of his and had a gleam in his eyes.
Cheers,
Blake
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Extracted from a thread just posted: Dinner at Badcuyp in Amsterdam with 2 local wine geek brothers: 2006 Taittinger Comtes, 1959 Doudot-Naudin Clos du Roi, 1995 Williams Selyem Riverblock Pinot, 2016 Huber Alte Reden Spat; 2013 Barl Fixin; 2023 Jones Carignon Gris
1995 WILLIAMS SELYEM ROCHIOLI RIVERBLOCK VINEYARD RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY PINOT NOIR- the fill was very high neck which was not a surprise as Burt insisted all bottles be filled to the cork; this also somewhat suggested the bottle had good provenance along with no signs of seepage, pushed cork or color taint; once again, we had an “older” wine that showed very little signs of aging and the bright red color on this one confirmed it as did the fresh and ripe blackberry and black raspberry fruit in the nose and taste profile; there was a hint of smoke and burnt berry that came in late; it had a soft and smooth mouthfeel and was in perfect balance throughout; as with the Comtes, I was delighted this showed so well and it also was a first time experience for the guys.
Cheers,
Blake
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Trying to find some of those WS bottles when Burt was winemaker is not the easiest task.
It isn’t easy, but occasionally, they show up in various auctions. When they do AND a photo of the bottle is included, check out the fill for better assurance of a viable wine.
I still have some bottles bought from the WS mailing list in the early 1990s, but less than 10 among 5 cases of mixed bottles including 6 mags.
BTW, Burt also made some great Zinfandels and even his Chardonnays were excellent, but the latter are mostly past their apogee, while the former are going to be greet for years to come.
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Thank you Blake for the thoughtful response. I hope at some point to find some bottles but it’s definitely going to require some luck. Cherish those 10 bottles. Cheers.
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Extracted from a thread just posted: Another wonderful dinner with my sweetie to celebrate her with 2012 Cristal and 1994 Williams Selyem Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
1994 WILLIAMS SELYEM SONOMA COAST PINOT NOIR- the fill was middle neck and the cork was super saturated all the way through except for the very top; the color was an appropriate youthful, vibrant, grainy red raspberry and the nose and taste profile was replete with spicy red and black raspberry and a hint of cinnamon; it was so savory and the smooth texture and long, satisfying finish added to its allure; no way does one get this is a 32 year old new world Pinot Noir in a blind tasting and I always wonder what Burt’s impressions would have been, but I feel confident in this case he would have been as ecstatic as we were with this bottle.
Cheers,
Blake
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