Paul Hobbs Winery & Vineyards Celebrating Twenty Years 1991-2011 Fall 2011 Newsletter Dear Friends, With the release of our most limited vineyard-designate and estate wines, we continue the year-long celebration of our Twentieth Anniversary! Our fall offering includes Lindsay Estate, Beckstoffer To Kalon, Richard Dinner (Cuvee Agustina), Stagecoach, Kick Ranch and Ulises Valdez Vineyards. As always, life at Paul Hobbs begins and ends in the vine- yard, much as Paul’s childhood days did in upstate New York. Pictured below is the family farm where Paul was raised, which inspired the design of Paul Hobbs Winery, pictured at right. Sebastopol apple country felt like home to Paul at first encoun- ter and so the two properties also bear a family resemblance, along with a sense of ‘home.’ This is a year of reflection, and of gratitude for all who have supported the adventure begun twenty years ago by Paul and partners. From the first case of wine that Paul sold and deliv- ered himself to Masa’s restaurant in San Francisco, it has been a fantastic journey. Now as ever, we are inspired to continue in a spirit of intense curiosity, collaboration and discovery. On that note, next year we will introduce two exciting new single-vineyard wines: chardonnay from Edward James Estate Vineyard located at Paul’s home and named after his great grandfather; and cabernet sauvignon from Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard in Napa Valley. We have raised a glass with many of you this year at special winery dinners, our Spring Open House and vertical tastings where guests were treated to a preview of the stunning 2010 pinot noirs, which will be released next spring and fall! We hope to see many more of you at our Fall Harvest Celebration. Reservations will be limited, so please respond early if you plan to attend. We are incredibly fortunate to have a mail list membership of true wine enthusiasts, who have shared in our journey over the years. We thank you and look forward with great joy to continuing to produce Paul Hobbs wines with utmost dedication for your utmost enjoyment. From all of us at Paul Hobbs, Cheers! 20th Anniversary Harvest Celebration! Saturday, September 10, 2011 • 11am to 4pm at the winery Please RSVP by Friday, August 26 • Reservations are limited! Think globally, act locally: The theme for our Spring Open House was Farm-To-Table and for fall we celebrate Paul’s international life in wine. Almost every continent will be represented in the décor and cuisine, so we encourage you to pick a culture and dress the part! Taste and purchase current release and limited library wines paired with exotic small bites, raise a glass with Paul and the staff, and enjoy live music at this festive afternoon gathering. Paul and the entire team look forward to welcoming you! Reservations will book up quickly, so don’t delay! You may RSVP to Audrey Proteau at [email protected] or 707-824-9879, ext 16
Transcript
Pau l H o b b sWinery & Vineyards
Celebrating Twenty Years1991-2011 Fall 2011 Newsletter
Dear Friends,With the release of our most limited vineyard-designate and estate wines, we continue the year-long celebration of our Twentieth Anniversary! Our fall offering includes Lindsay Estate, Beckstoffer To Kalon, Richard Dinner (Cuvee Agustina), Stagecoach, Kick Ranch and Ulises Valdez Vineyards.
As always, life at Paul Hobbs begins and ends in the vine-yard, much as Paul’s childhood days did in upstate New York. Pictured below is the family farm where Paul was raised, which inspired the design of Paul Hobbs Winery, pictured at right. Sebastopol apple country felt like home to Paul at first encoun-ter and so the two properties also bear a family resemblance, along with a sense of ‘home.’
This is a year of reflection, and of gratitude for all who have supported the adventure begun twenty years ago by Paul and partners. From the first case of wine that Paul sold and deliv-ered himself to Masa’s restaurant in San Francisco, it has been a fantastic journey. Now as ever, we are inspired to continue in a spirit of intense curiosity, collaboration and discovery. On
that note, next year we will introduce two exciting new single-vineyard wines: chardonnay from Edward James Estate Vineyard located at Paul’s home and named after his great grandfather; and cabernet sauvignon from Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard in Napa Valley.
We have raised a glass with many of you this year at special winery dinners, our Spring Open House and vertical tastings where guests were treated to a preview of the stunning 2010 pinot noirs, which will be released next spring and fall!
We hope to see many more of you at our Fall Harvest Celebration. Reservations will be limited, so please respond early if you plan to attend.
We are incredibly fortunate to have a mail list membership of true wine enthusiasts, who have shared in our journey over the years. We thank you and look forward with great joy to continuing to produce Paul Hobbs wines with utmost dedication for your utmost enjoyment.
From all of us at Paul Hobbs, Cheers!
20th Anniversary Harvest Celebration!Saturday, September 10, 2011 • 11am to 4pm at the winery
Please RSVP by Friday, August 26 • Reservations are limited!
Think globally, act locally: The theme for our Spring Open House was Farm-To-Table and for fall we celebrate Paul’s international life in wine. Almost every continent will be represented in the décor and cuisine, so we encourage you to pick a culture and dress the part!
Taste and purchase current release and limited library wines paired with exotic small bites, raise a glass with Paul and the staff, and enjoy live music at this festive afternoon gathering.
Paul and the entire team look forward to welcoming you!
Reservations will book up quickly, so don’t delay!
You may RSVP to Audrey Proteau at [email protected] or 707-824-9879, ext 16
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2009 Chardonnay, Ulises Valdez Vineyard, Russian River Valley
Characteristically bold, yet refined in texture and seamlessly integrated, this opalescent, pale straw chardonnay is seductively aromatic with white flowers, stone fruit and lime rind. A tautly structured palate is creamy and layered with flavors of Fuji apple, yeasty brioche, meringue and ginger. This intense weave of flavors persists over a crisp, lingering finish accented with wet stone and citrus. Aged 13 months in French oak barrels; 67% new
2009 Chardonnay, Cuvee Agustina, Richard Dinner Vineyard, Sonoma Mountain
As Paul’s daughter Agustina begins her junior year in high school, we release another stunning vintage of the barrel selection estab-lished in her honor. The 2009 vintage brings enhanced vibrancy to this unctuous, mineral-driven offering. Glistening pale gold in color, it is richly scented with honeysuckle, lychee and minerals. An expansive palate opens with concentrated flavors of Anjou pear and fresh fig; subtle accents of raw almond, butterscotch and lemon blossom unfold in silky succession to add complexity. Intense minerality and bright acidity emerge on the mid-palate, lengthening a spicy finish. Aged 15 months in French oak barrels; 86% new
Night harvesting of pinot noir: cold fruit is firm-skinned fruit, essential in ensuring that whole berries remain intact until safely delivered to tank via gentle gravity flow. For this reason, we often harvest between midnight and 7am. The esprit de corps at Paul Hobbs means that everyone works harvest. Pictured here is Marketing Coordinator Audrey Proteau, in her seventh year with us, at the sorting table with Argentine intern Maria Paz.
Fall 2011 Releases2009 Harvest Notes: Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in Sonoma County2009 began with an abundance of spring rain followed by mild, steady summer temperatures that set the stage for nearly ideal pinot noir and chardonnay growing conditions. The well-set fruit ripened slowly allowing for an excellent balance of sugars and acids to develop. The resulting wines can be characterized as elegant and rich with profound depth and structure.
2009 Pinot Noir, Lindsay Estate Vineyard, Russian River Valley
2009 marks our fifth release of the luxuriant, elegant pinot noir we produce from Lindsay Estate Vineyard. This small, fourteen acre parcel, with its iron-rich soils, is home to our winery and pres-ents a mosaic of contours; slopes and swails that create a diver-sity of microclimates, along with endless potential to blend for complexity and balance with each vintage. Complexity that would exasperate some winemakers, this vineyard pairs perfectly with Paul’s enthusiasm and acumen for detail in the vineyard.
As many of you know, we often produce an even more limited wine from the vineyard in addition to Lindsay Estate: Cuvee Agustina Pinot Noir. A clonal selection, it is produced in vintages when our beloved A9 block presents us with a wine so stunning as to suggest it should stand on its own, rather than be blended into the Lindsay Estate Pinot Noir. While the 2009 vintage is already being appropriately heralded as exceptional; our best instincts, and our palates, ultimately convinced us that blending the A9 lots into Lindsay Estate Pinot Noir would be the best way to capture the most intense, complex expression from the vintage. The result: a pinot noir of exceptional fruit purity, structure and length.
Deep ruby in color, it is perfumed with violets, bright Bing cherry and clean earth. The palate is firmly structured, opening with perfectly ripened raspberry and red fruits that yield to undertones of forest floor and orange pekoe. Firm, youthful tannins are joined by notes of clove and white pepper to create a lasting finish. Aged 15 months in French oak barrels; 67% new
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Paul Hobbs Wines Upcoming Events Aug 17: Charlie Palmer Restaurant Winemaker Dinner with Paul - Costa Mesa, CA
Aug 21-22: Family Winemakers of California - Fort Mason, SF
Sept 2: Del Frisco’s Winemaker Dinner with Paul - Las Vegas, NV
Sept 8: Park Avenue Autumn Winemaker Dinner with Paul - New York, NY
Sept 10: Paul Hobbs Winery - Sebastopol, CA 20th Anniversary Harvest Celebration at the winery; Paul hosting
Sept 16: 49er Academy Gala Dinner & Auction - Atherton, CA
Oct 20-22: Wine Spectator’s New York Wine Experience - New York, NYPaul will be pouring wines from Paul Hobbs Winery and Vina Cobos. Seminar on 2008 Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley.
Nov 19: PinotFest, Farallon Restaurant - San Francisco, CA
For more information, please visit us on Facebook or at paulhobbs.com.
2009 Syrah, Kick Ranch Vineyard, Sonoma CountyKick Ranch Syrah has gained a nickname as our ‘secret wine.’ Sold almost exclusively through the mailing list, it is our only syrah, inspired by a vineyard strikingly reminiscent of ideal sites in the Northern Rhône. The heat at this rocky, west-facing ranch, is tempered by cool air that makes its way down the western slopes of the Mayacmas Mountains. This greater temperature differen-tial from day to night allows us to produce a meaty, full-intensity syrah that remains focused, balanced and firmly structured.
Dense violet/ruby in color, it is vibrantly floral and earthy on the nose. A burst of ripe, juicy black plum, blueberry and sweet tobacco intro-duces a palate heady with nuances of anise, thyme, sweet tobacco and leather. As fruit and savory flavors meld through the mid-palate, a hint of toasted vanilla bean and citrus oil adds dimension as big, ripe tannins confirm the wine’s muscularity and age-worthiness over the finish. Aged 18 months in French oak barrels; 63% new
The rocky, southwest-facing slopes of Stagecoach Vineyard sit high above Napa Valley, producing richly-textured mountain cabernet sauvignon. Harvesting at Stagecoach, pre-dawn, as the sun pierces and softens the darkness, the geese fly overhead and the fog recedes below this eagle’s nest of a site, you feel an intensity that is reflected in Stagecoach Cabernet Sauvignon.
2008 Cabernet Sauvignon, Stagecoach Vineyard, Napa ValleyPure, densely concentrated mountain fruit, grippy tannins and length, length, length: an apt characteriza-tion of this Stagecoach Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon.
Produced from a superior small section of rocky, red volcanic soils at high elevation, it is deep garnet in color and fragrant with bold, ripe red berries, cassis, red lico-rice and sage. Texturally, it is weighty and muscular, from its assertive entry through to the finish, where well-delin-eated fruit flavors harmonize with leather, toasted vanilla bean and ripe tannins that permeate the finish.
From experience, we know that our Stagecoach Cabernet Sauvignon is a gem for the cellar; angular but yielding gorgeous fruit in the near-term, it will age indefinitely to become a wine of exceptional grace and power in balance. Aged 20 months in French oak barrels; 98% new
2008 Cabernet Sauvignon, Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard, Oakville, Napa ValleyPaul’s expertise with To Kalon Vineyard goes far deeper than simply under-standing the merits of a site or a name. Having known the vineyard for over thirty years now, he continues to enjoy there an ever-fascinating collabora-tion of land and farmer. Paul began his ardent study of the site back in his days at Robert Mondavi Winery and with decades of familiarity, continues to approach it with fresh eyes, as well as experience, in order to cultivate from it a wine of ever more articulate expression, beauty, nuance and dimension.
Sourced from favored rows within the esteemed BV4 block, the 2008 release achieves formidable complexity and refinement. Its black crimson hues are resplendent with aromas of blackberry, red currant and graphite. The palate is silky and graceful, yet powerfully charged with intense, finely sculpted layers of crème de cassis, bittersweet cocoa and cedar. The mid-palate confirms the wine’s breadth with a surprising lift brought on by very subtle notes of yeasty bread and vanillin, in a crescendo toward an endless finish graced with firm, stately tannins. Aged 20 months in French oak barrels; 100% new
2008 Harvest Notes: Cabernet Sauvignon in Napa Valley2008 began with an exceptionally dry spring and early budbreak. Frosts in April significantly lowered cluster counts. Weather stabilized and warmed through summer, with warmer temperatures continuing through harvest. A smaller crop of high quality fruit was able to ripen fully and evenly, developing an excellent balance of sugars and acid. Overall, the 2008 wines are bright and expressive with well-articulated flavors.
Paul Hobbs Winery & Vineyard
3355 Gravenstein Highway North
Sebastopol, California 95472
www.paulhobbs.com
Spring 2012 Preview
2010 Chardonnay, Russian River Valley
2010 Chardonnay, Richard Dinner Vineyard, Sonoma Mountain
2010 Chardonnay, Ritchie Vineyard, Russian River Valley
2010 Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley
2010 Pinot Noir, Ulises Valdez Vineyard, Russian River Valley
2010 Pinot Noir, Hyde Vineyard, Carneros, Napa Valley
2009 Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
2009 Cabernet Sauvignon, Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard, St. Helena, Napa Valley
Inaugural Vintage!:
2009 Cabernet Sauvignon, Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard, Napa Valley
vPaul Hobbs Winery Tours by Appointment
We invite you to visit the winery for a tour and tasting. To schedule, you may reach us by phone at 707-824-9879, ext 21 or via email at [email protected].
