Joseph Ward spotlights a handful of small new vineyards that have emerged as leaders of the pinot noir pack

At elevations ranging from 800 to 1,200 feet, these are cool sites, and their proximity to the ocean brings high winds and, frequently, torrential winter storms. The elevation provides one great advantage: When fog envelops the Sonoma Coast and much of the Russian River Valley, these hillsides are bathed in sunshine. The long growing season is cool but sunny, ideal for the Burgundy varietals of chardonnay and especially pinot noir. This part of the Sonoma Coast American Viticultural Area (AVA) has little wine-growing history, but already a few vineyards—Marcassin, Hirsch, Camp Meeting Ridge—are recognized as among California's finest sites for chardonnay and pinot noir. There are several others of comparable quality, and by the end of the decade, this could be America's premier region for pinot noir.

Marcassin Vineyard
Helen Turley and John Wetlaufer purchased a 40-acre parcel in 1985, and they planted just over eight and a half acres of vines in 1991. The first commercial release of Marcassin Vineyard's estate chardonnay and pinot noir was the 1996 vintage. Both wines were outstanding, and subsequent vintages are showing greater complexity, which is hardly surprising given Turley's track record. Since 1990 she has produced a string of profound vineyard-designated chardonnays from select cool-climate sites in Sonoma. Dealing with growers, even conscientious ones, is not the same as owning a vineyard and controlling all aspects of viticulture and winemaking. A virtuoso can produce sweet music with a borrowed instrument but something more profound with his own.

This husband-and-wife team is well matched. Wetlaufer, who is in charge of the vineyard, looks at things from every angle—up, down, and sideways—weighing each available scrap of data. Knowing that nature has the final say, he wants to be in a position to maximize largesse and minimize parsimony. He is particularly proud of the 1998s, products of a growing season the likes of which he hopes never to see again. "Starting with a very wet, cold winter, through a rainy spring and a cool summer, there was no easy period the whole year," he says.

"Still, I think the wines are magnificent."

Turley, on the other hand, is much more intuitive. She is a rarity in California: an accomplished winemaker uninterested in tech talk. Instead, she relies on her senses and discusses wine, as would any good Burgundian, in terms of sight, smell, and taste. The wines she crafts are meant to delight the senses.