Posted by Robert Whitley on May 16, 2012 at 10:41 AM

The King of Pinot Noir

I met Gary Farrell for the first time more than 20 years ago. He was a modest man making very good wine under difficult conditions in California's Russian River Valley.

The difficult conditions were self-imposed, for Farrell specialized in pinot noir. California pinot noir, at that time, was anything but a ringing endorsement for the potential of California viticulture. The pinots of that era were either colorless, thin and acidic or ponderous and boring.

The elegant pinots Farrell made for Davus Bynum and his own small label were the exception, not the rule. Few winemakers from that time had the first clue about pinot noir. They didn't know where to grow it and certainly didn't know how to make it.

In my earliest discussions with him about California pinot noir, Farrell laid much of the blame at the feet of University of California, Davis, the pre-eminent university in the nation for aspiring winemakers. Farrell stumbled, just as everyone else had, with his first attempts at producing world-class pinot noir that would rival the great red wines of France's Burgundy region.

He eventually blazed his own path, and the Gary Farrell winery eventually became a source for some of California's finest pinots. Farrell sold his "namesake" winery in 2004, and in 2007 hooked up with neighbor and colleague Bill Hambrecht to launch Alysian Wines.

Alysian is a Russian River Valley winery dedicated to small batches of high quality pinot noir and chardonnay. I hadn't spoken to Farrell in years when a sample pack of five Alysian pinots arrived at my office recently, to be followed by a brief email.

I was intrigued first because of Farrell's involvement, and later when I perused the technical information that accompanied the wines. Two of them were below 14 percent alcohol by volume, and the other three were nominally above the 14 percent mark.

Could it be that Farrell was up to his old tricks, making elegant pinot noir that wouldn't clobber you over the head with alcohol and massive fruit? The major difference between New World pinot noir today and the finest red Burgundies is structure.

New World pinots tend to be soft and voluptuous, and sweet to a certain extent. They taste good and have forged an impressive following, but they barely resemble the wines of Burgundy that inspired winemakers such as Farrell in the first place.

The Alysian pinots are that rarity in New World pinot, exhibiting the firm structure and weightlessness on the palate that are the hallmarks of great red Burgundy. This is accomplished without sacrificing aromatics, fruit concentration or flavor. The bright acidity and firm tannins are the bones, and superb Russian River Valley pinot noir grapes ensure there is plenty of flesh on those bones.

The landscape for California pinot noir has changed radically over the past 20 years. There are numerous other RRV producers doing stellar work with pinot, but as a group I do believe the five Alysian pinots sampled recently are the finest I've ever tasted.

I used to think of Gary Farrell as the king of California pinot noir. I still do

(See reviews of Alysian Pinot Noir on Reviews Page.)