Anthill Farms Harmony Lane Vineyard Pinot Noir

About

The three of us crossed paths while working at Williams-Selyem in 2003 after a few years as cellar rats in California, Oregon, and Virginia. We started Anthill Farms in 2004, making eight-and-a-half barrels of wine our first year. Today, we make eight single-vineyard Pinots and two appellation wines every year; depending on the vintage, we’ll also produce two or three Syrahs and a Chardonnay. We release the Sonoma County Pinot Noirs and Chardonnay to our mailing list members in spring; fall sees the Mendocino County and Syrah offering. Outside of our mailing list, a small amount of wine is released every year to restaurants and wine shops.

The ridge in between Graton and Occidental is known by several names-Occidental Ridge; Stoetz Ridge; and, perhaps most commonly, Harrison Grade, after its principal roadway. Harmony Lane occupies a three-acre site of fine Goldridge soil just below this ridgeline at about 800 feet. This elevation puts the vineyard right at the edge of the marine layer: the fog laps the vineyard like a shoreline, creating a dynamic warm-and-cool environment that creates of wines of elegant bearing and tight precision.

The Anthill Farms Harmony Lane Vineyard Pinot Noir is one of the more open-knit wines in this range. Sweet red cherry, kirsch, rose petal and spice give the Harmony a distinctly exotic feel. Soft curves and silky tannins are nicely complemented by underpinnings of salinity that give the wine a lovely sense of proportion.