In ‘05 Williams Selyem winemaker began blending in a small amount of fruit from their Litton Estate vineyards, and almost 15% of this blend comes from specially selected Litton blocks. Medium red, but rich in color, the wine presents a bouquet of ripe strawberries, berry cobbler, plums, anise, clove, butterscotch and toasty oak. The palate is layered with flavors of blackberry, cassis, cherry cola, sarsaparilla, toasted bread, minerals and concentrated ripe tannins. This multifarious and seductive wine shows the true vineyard expressions of this unique area — plus it was a lot of fun to blend.
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"The 2007 Pinot Noir Westside Neighbors displays slightly more minerality, has a fragrant nose of raspberry, cherry, and root vegetables, medium to full body, and an excellent finish. Both of these wines are capable of evolving for 7-10 years.
(Not yet released)
With over a dozen Pinot Noirs, one would think that winemaker Bob Cabral would be perennially stressed out having to deal with so many different vineyards. However, except for the blend of Russian River and Westside Road Neighbors, they are all legitimate vineyards, and I can fully comprehend why they would want to keep them separate. As I have said before, there is a clear “house” style, with wines tending to have a slightly higher acid profile, lower pHs. But there is no doubting that these are well-made wines which are, for the most part, age-worthy Pinot Noirs which, with some patience, reward cellaring. In 2006, a challenging vintage in the Russian River area (less so on the Sonoma Coast), the 2006 vintage has turned out well at Williams-Selyem. Of course, 2007 is a more fragrant, purer vintage from an integrity perspective, so those wines will be a no-brainer. I will comment on all the single vineyards, but as I write them, I must offer a word of advice: don’t dare ignore the brilliant Zinfandels and Chardonnays that Cabral turns out. They are not as renowned as the single-vineyard Pinots, but they are top-flight wines. A Pinot Noir that really depends on vintage for success is from the San Benito Valley south of San Francisco, home to the old Almaden winery.
" -Rated 90, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
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" Deep ruby-red. Smoky, complex aromas of blackberry, cola, sassafras and black cardamom. Powerful dark berry flavors display liqueur-like depth, with framing chewy tannins slowly sucked up by the dense, sweet fruit. The tannins recur on the finish, which strongly echoes the deep dark berry and cola notes. Serious stuff, and deserving of another five years in the cellar." -Rated 93, Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar
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