2011 Merry Edwards, Angel Wing Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley - Magnum

Merry Edwards' Angel Wing Pinot Noir originates from the Meredith Estate in the Sebastopol Hills, a cooler sub-region of the Russian River Valley, where meticulous viticulture prioritizes soil health with organic composts and cover crops to express specific site characteristics. Edwards’ winemaking, informed by clonal research and Méthode de l'Ancienne, employs open-top fermentation with 25-30% whole clusters and a 10-month aging regimen in Burgundian oak, shaping a wine of inherent structural depth. The 2011 vintage, marked by a challenging cool growing season and late-season rains in the Russian River Valley, yielded wines with pronounced acidity and a lean, tightly coiled profile, often picked before full physiological ripeness. This resulted in an Angel Wing that emphasizes nerve and tension, showcasing a refined structural framework rather than overt ripeness, built for long-term evolution and revealing complex tertiary development over time. Its balance of texture and tart acidity reflects the vintage's distinctive imprint on the Pinot Noir grape, offering a wine of considerable longevity.