Thomas Rivers Brown and his wife Genevieve Marie Walsh have quickly made Rivers-Marie one of California’s most sought after Pinot Noir labels. The winery was founded in 2002 and the first release was the Rivers-Marie Summa Vineyard Pinot Noir. Rivers-Marie also does several single vineyard Cabernets and a Chardonnay. In addition to making his own wine, Thomas serves as a consultant for a number of wineries including Schrader, Outpost and Black Sears.
Crimson in color. 141% ABV. Glorious nose of red fruits, earth and baking spices. Medium body with perfect acidity. Light and lithe on the palate. Flavors of cranberry, cherries, blood orange and mushrooms. Exceptional length on the finish of this supremely elegant wine. Drink over the next 2-4 years.
My rating: 92 points.
Consistent with my reviews for the 2011 and 2012 versions.
This wine was only $25 and is undoubtedly the best Pinot Noir for the price in all of California. In fact it might be the best $25 domestic wine period. With the recent release of the 2014 the price increased to $30 per bottle.
Rivers-Marie wines are only available via their mailing list. The 2013 version of this wine will be released next Spring.
I’ve blogged about Rivers-Marie previously in Zinfandel Chronicles Power Rankings.
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Nice to hear its a nice early drinking pinot. I just ordered some 14’s so will look forward to drink them in 2017-2018.
They will age well for several years. So easy to open a bottle when it only set you back $25.