Bouchaine Vineyards: 2007 Estate Pinot Noir



By Kori ~ February 15th, 2010.

Regular readers know that it’s not often that I give high praise to a Pinot. However, we recently had the opportunity to taste the 2007 Bouchaine Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir in a samples tasting, and it was excellent.

Bouchaine Vineyards is the oldest continuously operated winery in the Carneros District of the Napa Valley in California. In 1929, an Italian winemaker named Johnny Garetto purchased the land that is today’s Bouchaine Vineyards. Beringer bought the estate from Garetto in 1951 and used it as a storage and blending facility. In 1981, Gerret and Tatiana Copeland of Wilmington, Delaware, together with a group of partners purchased the winery and established Chateau Bouchaine. Ten years later, the couple became sole proprietors of the winery and renamed it Bouchaine Vineyards.

The Copelands named Michael Richmond winemaker in 2002. Richmond uses an interesting human analogy to describe the dramatic difference between making Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, the two varieties best suited to the climate of Carneros.

“Making Chardonnay is like raising kids back in the 50’s, with a lot of parental control and the expectation that the next generation will conform to that training. Making Pinot is the more ‘modern way’ of raising children, where the parents just set the boundaries and try to keep them out of jail. With Chardonnay, we hope to be delighted by and proud of the outcome of our supervision; with Pinot, we hope to be delighted and relieved by the way it turns out. It’s the difference between shaping the Chardonnay and allowing the Pinot to manifest itself. Pinot is one of the most precocious and capricious of all grape varieties.”

Bouchaine is devoted to sustainable practices in the vineyard and winery, holding both the Napa Valley Green and Fish-Friendly Farming Environmental certifications.

2007 Bouchaine Estate Pinot Noir (Carneros, Napa Valley, California): Medium-deep ruby red in color. Beautiful bouquet with aromas of red fruits and pencil shavings. Strawberry, raspberry, cranberry, and smoke come through on the palate. Medium to full-bodied and lively with medium tannins. Well-balanced and complex with a long, pleasant finish.
Quality: 4 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Where to Buy: Received as sample, suggested retail $45; Available elsewhere, $30 to $53 [previous vintages]


Filed under: American Wine, California Wine, Pinot Noir, Red Wine, Wines Over $25

Reader's Comments

  1. tony smith | February 15th, 2010 at 12:25 pm

    Great Pinot is one of my favorite things. I’m glad you have found one that you like. that said i just recently took the advice from Nina at Esquin and bought the greenstone point pinot noir 2008 – $9.99. I was blown away. This is from New Zeland and very much worth your exploration. So is the Sauv Blanc from Dashwood if you haven’t already tried that.

  2. Kori | February 16th, 2010 at 10:25 am

    Tony,
    Thanks for the Greenstone rec. I’ve had a couple good Pinots from New Zealand but haven’t tried that one. I love New Zealand Sauv Blanc and agree that Dashwood is a good one. Cheers!