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2017 Williams Selyem Williams Selyem Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir

Removed from a professional wine storage facility; Purchased at retail

Ends Sunday, 7pm Pacific

RATINGS

95+ Robert M. Parker Jr.

...crushed blueberry and blackberry, black cherry, cinnamon and vanilla touches plus licorice, loamy earth, dried leaves and tobacco/cedar hints. Medium-bodied, rounded and wonderfully silky and concentrated, it offers lovely flavor layers, a youthfully firm frame of tannins and great juicy freshness on the amazingly long, layered and energetic finish.

95Jeb Dunnuck

...foresty, pine, spice, and mulled red and black fruit-driven aromatics. These all carry over on the palate, where the wine is medium to full-bodied, has bright, juicy acidity, elegant tannins...

94Wine Spectator

Sleek, with lively and pure-tasting cherry, plum and currant flavors that are well-structured. Very minerally, featuring a fresh, crisp finish that lingers with spice and slate details, along with hints of licorice.

94+ Vinous / IWC

94James Suckling

...array of red cherries, raspberries, red plums, blueberries and blackberries – a riot of pinot noir fruit here! The palate has a super silky feel with smooth, fine and layered tannins that add increasing depth and richness.

PRODUCER

Williams Selyem

Williams Selyem was founded in 1981 when Ed Selyem and Burt Williams, friends who shared winemaking as a hobby, decided to make a commercial vintage. The men were neighbors in the Russian River Valley with full time jobs that were unrelated to winemaking. Nevertheless they purchased grapes and made Zinfandel, then single-vineyard Pinot Noir. Williams Selyem Pinots quickly earned a cult following. In 1998 the founders sold the winery to John and Kathe Dyson, former customers with backgrounds in wine production and business. The winemaker is John Cabral. Though the estate is best known for Pinot Noir, it also makes Chardonnay and Zinfandel. Says Robert M. Parker Jr: “The overall style of Williams Selyem Pinots remains one of elegant, high-acid wines that can age….”

REGION

United States, California, Sonoma, Russian River Valley

Russian River Valley AVA is named for the river that meanders from Mendocino County in the north until it finally runs into the Pacific Ocean north of San Francisco. The AVA is cool thanks to its proximity to the northern California coast and the river, and grape growers must learn to deal with regular fog. Nevertheless in recent decades the AVA has become one of the best in the state, meaning that its wines often earn excellent reviews and have considerable cachet. The AVA status was awarded in 1983 and today the appellation has 15,000 vineyard acres. Chardonnay is the most widely planted grape though Pinot Noir has also been very successful in recent decades. Russian River Valley Pinot Noir are known for being rich, lush and filled with concentrated fruit and berry flavors. Russian River Pinot Noirs are today considered some of the best domestic Pinot Noirs.

TYPE

Red Wine, Pinot Noir

This red wine is relatively light and can pair with a wide variety of foods. The grape prefers cooler climates and the wine is most often associated with Burgundy, Champagne and the U.S. west coast. Regional differences make it nearly as fickle as it is flexible.

VINTAGE

2017 Williams Selyem Williams Selyem Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir

WINEMAKER