2017 Hirsch Vineyards Estate Pinot Noir Reserve Sonoma Coast 750 ml

Hirsch Vineyards stands at the very pinnacle of California Pinot Noir, alongside cult bottlings like Williams Selyem and Littorai. But as an estate-grown expression of the sea-sprayed True Sonoma Coast, Hirsch stands alone. 

That’s why our entire office rushed to grab their glasses when we realized that our Master Sommelier Sur Lucero was about to pop the cork on the ruby-red 2017 Hirsch Vineyards Reserve Estate Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast—and why we’re beyond thrilled to share a rare allocation of the 2017 Hirsch Vineyards Reserve Pinot Noir. 

“Hirsch started the conversation on how close great Pinot Noir can grow to the coast,” Sur said as we gathered around, soaking up his excitement and swirling the captivating ruby-red Pinot in our glasses. The pioneering Hirsch family may have started the conversation, but this Pinot shows that they’re now setting the bar. Laden with black and red fruits, it’s polished and lifted, and at the very beginning of a life that will show the coastal vibrancy of Hirsch’s one-of-a-kind terroir for the next decade.

Sur’s personal connection to winemaker and second-generation proprietor Jasmine Hirsch landed this allocation from one of the true icons of California. Hirsch sits with the most coveted Burgundy and Pinot Noir bottlings in some of the most exclusive cellars in the world, including The French Laundry, where the Reserve goes for $150… and that’s for a half-bottle!

The Sonoma Coast AVA is “absurdly extensive” according to the World Atlas of Wine, so over the years, an unofficial designation has emerged: “True Sonoma Coast” is the term many use to characterize the wineries that sit closest to the crashing waves, and the inimitable cool-climate wines these producers put forth. 

No winery is truer to the ideals of this daring region than Hirsch. The 1,000-acre property was purchased in 1978 by David Hirsch, who had no plans to grow grapes on the overgrazed and eroded land. But a vintner friend suggested that Hirsch might have a site for world-class Pinot Noir on his hands. 

David looked to the best-kept part of the property, Madrone Ridge, and it was the first one he chose to plant. He started in 1980, and eventually began supplying Sonoma County wineries with his inimitable Pinot Noir. 

Perhaps the biggest month in Hirsch’s history was February of 1994, when three eventual Pinot Noir legends—Ted Lemon of Littorai, Burt Williams of Williams Selyem, and Steve Kistler—all visited the site, and all left impressed. Each vintner began to produce a Hirsch-labeled single-site Pinot Noir. And in the following years, as David Hirsch sold every grape from the Hirsch vineyard and California Pinot Noir gained ground in the market, the Hirsch name turned to gold. 

In 2002, Hirsch made the monumental decision to build a winery on the site and start making his own wines. And although there were some commercial aims, the number one reason Hirsch did it was to get immediate feedback on his grape growing. 

It’s as impossible to characterize Hirsch as it is Burgundy—located on the San Andreas Fault, the soils are a magnificent jumble, and the 72 acres of vines exist in 61 distinct farming blocks divided by soil, exposure, and topography. The blocks were developed separately, and are farmed, harvested, and vinified the same way.  

The Reserve is one of the most complete and carefully cultivated expressions of Hirsch’s special terroir, a complete and powerful picture of the vineyard achieved through a selection of the best and oldest vineyard blocks. There is no higher representation of the True Sonoma Coast’s unique Pinot Noir conditions, and it never fails to thrill.