2023 Meadowcroft Pinot Noir Russian River Valley 750 ml

When wine lovers hear the name “Westside Road” they think of vineyards like Rochioli, Williams Selyem, Flax, and Bacigalupi. It’s some of the most coveted real estate in Sonoma for growing Pinot Noir, and the wines from that location usually carries price-tags to match.

The 2023 Meadowcroft Russian River Pinot is sourced from a prime site in those golden miles—a vineyard whose name is locked behind an ironclad NDA. The wine is a testament to the deep network of connections and skill of its founder, Tom Meadowcroft. As a former vineyard manager for Opus One, Cakebread, Duckhorn, and Stags Leap, he developed one of the deepest Rolodexes in the business. Once he launched his own label, he started mining those connections to deliver outrageous values—like today’s Russian River Pinot.

Russian River is famed for deep Goldridge sandy-loam soils, dense morning fog, and the lush, dark-cherry Pinot Noirs that they create. But Westside Road put the area on the map, as producers like Rochioli, Williams Selyem, and Merry Edwards mined their own estates or vineyards like Flax and Bacigalupi to define the modern style of Sonoma Pinot.

In the 2022 vintage, the region was blessed with a smooth—if lower yielding—growing season. Those lower yields were the result of small berries, which in turn produced concentrated wines. Here, that translates to seductive cherry and blackberry notes, accented by the signature kola nut and spice of the region. The polish on the palate suggests a Pinot in the $50+ range—which is what this real estate normally suggests, as well. It’s a bottle that’s fine being a Saturday night centerpiece, but it’ll certainly tempt you on the weeknights.