2013 Chad Pinot Noir Russian River Valley Sonoma County 750 ml

2013 CHAD Russian River Pinot Noir … And a Dozen Buster Posey Rookie Cards

We first met Chad in the summer of 2009 at a Napa Valley BBQ. The young winemaker had recently hatched an idea to help his winemaker buddies hold on to their jobs as Napa Valley was rattled by the Great Recession.

The idea for CHAD was straightforward enough. His friends had crafted luscious coastal Pinot Noirs and Napa Valley Cabernets, but almost all were stuck in warehouses, as retailers and wholesalers stopped answering calls from panicked wineries.

By 2012 CHAD was on fire, not only treating WineAccess members to many of the highest-rated Pinot Noir bargains in website history, but also capturing the imagination of N.Y.C.’s top sommelier, Michael Madrigale at Daniel Boulud’s Bar Boulud and Boulud Sud. A little idea, seemingly, had become a BIG deal, and Chad was on the fast track towards Easy Street.

But, as we learned just before Christmas when we saw our friend at the Napa Valley Coffee Roasting Company in St. Helena, Chad is far better at forging relationships with the top Pinot Noir names on the coast than he is at accounting!

“The accountant says I’m ‘overextended.’ Says I shouldn’t have bought all these 2013s, even though it’s one of the best Pinot Noir vintages I’ve ever seen. I have to pay taxes on what I supposedly ‘earned’ in 2014 — but I have no cash! It’s all locked up in inventory.”

Chad’s hand trembled just a touch as he picked up his mug. “He didn’t give me much of a choice. The only thing I own outright is my 2004 Nissan Pathfinder and a dozen Buster Posey rookie cards — which I won’t sell. Otherwise, he said, I have to liquidate 2013s to pay the tax man or start reading Chapter 11 of the tax code. I don’t get it. Why do I have to pay taxes on money I never MADE?”

Did we feel badly? Sure. As importers, we often found ourselves in Chad’s shoes, obliged to sell inventory at cost to keep the IRS off our backs. So, given our empathy and how much CHAD has done for WineAccess — not to mention for “Boulud Corner” at 63rd and Broadway! — shouldn’t we have pitched in and bailed Chad out?

Maybe. Even probably. But in the end … we did what we’re paid to do.

The 2013 CHAD Pinot Noir Russian River Valley is brilliant, deep ruby-red. Grown on prized Goldridge soils, the aromas are of black cherry and black raspberry, tinged with sweet spice and wild strawberry jam. Rich, dense, juicy, and absolutely voluptuous on the attack, filled with ultra-concentrated red-fruit preserves, violets, and a hint of mint, this is Pinot Noir of immense purity and polish, finishing — as The Wine Advocate suggests — with classic 2013 crispness and reserve. Drink now-2020.

$45 under the winery’s own label. Just $20 today. Shipping included on 6. Really sorry, good buddy.