On the 22nd of October I drove from San Francisco to Sonoma County stopping in Windsor for lunch and to visit Merry Edwards's wine tasting room. We tried a Chardonnay with grapes from Martinelli but the one that made an impression was the 2007 Merry Edwards Flax Vineyard Pinot Noir. Deeper color than another P.N. we tried, darker berries and cherries on the palate. Somewhat savory. Long aftertaste. I ordered another bottle to go with a pending order from the mailing list.
I also stopped at Gary Farrell along River Road. It was an overcast drizzly day so the view wasn't as lovely as on my visit three years ago. I tried the 2007 Rochioli-Allen Vineyards Chardonnay, Russian River Valley. Rich, creamy with a medium gold color. 472 cases. "Wine Enthusiast" awarded 94 points. The 2007 Starr Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir, from Dijon clones, received 92 points from WE. I prefered the 2007 Gary Farrell Ramal Vineyard Pinot Noir, Carneros (sold for $50 vs. $60 for the Starr Ridge). 666 cases. Cranberry, pomegranate, kirsch, black cherry and plum (from tasting room notes). I got some faint rose petal and dried herbs on the nose. (WE score of 90).
I also tried 2008 Gary Farrell Bradford Mountain Zinfandel, Dry Creek Valley ($45). 456 cases. It tasted smooth and polished and not too alcoholic. Medium-length finish. Cherries and blackberries.
The 2007 Gary Farrell Rusian River Selection Pinot Noir ($42 and 90 points from WE) was a pretty, medium garnet color with transparency. I found cherries and plums on the palate as the tasting room notes indicate.
Next tasting--Hartford Court.