2013 Knez Winery Pinot Noir Anderson Valley 750 ml

Kosta Browne’s Pinot Noir Land Grab and an under-$25 Pinot Noir

In 1997, Dan Kosta and Michael Browne pooled every nickel they’d saved while working the floor at John Ash & Co. in Santa Rosa and launched a small winery in Sonoma. Then, a little over a decade later, in one of the more talked-about wine deals of its time, the self-taught winemakers sold a controlling interest in Kosta Browne to an investment group for almost $40 million!

Many would have taken their fortune and prepared for early retirement. But not Kosta and Browne. Instead, the two superstar winemakers embraced their new partnership, not only raising the bar in the winery, but also taking full advantage of the investment firm’s deep pockets, pursuing the most prestigious and sought-after Pinot Noir vineyards along Sonoma’s chilly coastline.

In short order, Michael and Dan acquired or entered into long-term vineyard contracts with a lineup of California Grand Cru Pinot Noir sites, including Kanzler, Gap’s Crown (the backbone of Kosta Browne’s 2011 Wine Spectator “Wine of the Year”), Pisoni in the Santa Lucia Highlands, and Keefer Ranch, Cohn, Giusti, and Koplen in Russian River.

But Peter Knez’s Cerise and Demuth vineyards, considered by many to be the most extreme and extraordinary Pinot Noir plantings on one of the coast’s coldest perches, remained off-limits to Kosta Browne. That is, until the deal we learned about on August 5th, when Wine Spectator broke the story that turned the heads of serious American Pinot Noir collectors from the Bay Area to Madison Avenue.

Finally, Kosta Browne had laid claim to the greatest Pinot Noir prize of all, acquiring the Cerise Vineyards for an undisclosed sum.

Why was Kosta Browne so focused on this extraordinary land grab? When we first visited Cerise and Demuth in 2009, we wondered why Peter Knez ever believed that Pinot Noir would grow in such an unaccommodating locale. The vineyards each sit among 800 acres of undulating hillsides, stretching up to 1,100 feet in elevation. Even in mid-summer, the winds off the Pacific keep daytime highs in the mid-70s. Foggy mornings and evenings slow down the maturation cycle, extending the growing season. Berry size is tiny, as are yields — rarely exceeding 1.5 tons per acre — making for prohibitively high farming costs.

Despite the daunting economics, Knez threw caution to the wind and pressed on, farming Cerise and Demuth fastidiously. Peter’s investment paid off in rave reviews from Parker, Tanzer, and Galloni and high-profile placements from The French Laundry to Le Bernardin. But when Kosta Browne came calling, he had to listen. And after Knez accepted their offer, he called us.

2013 provided a picture-perfect script. Despite drought conditions and bright sunshine, temperatures remained mild. Chilly maritime winds refreshed and cleansed the vines. Clusters ripened slowly, sugars climbing incrementally as acids remained firm. When the call to harvest was made, skins were thick without a sign of desiccation, picked at 20.8 to 23 Brix. Berries were loaded, while finished alcohol came in at a modest average of 13.5% across Cerise and Demuth, and pH remained firm near 3.6 — numbers far more akin to a warm year in Gevrey-Chambertin than the Golden Coast.

The 2013 Knez Pinot Noir Anderson Valley is a gorgeous blend of two-thirds Cerise Vineyard and one-third Demuth Vineyard. Brilliant ruby to the rim, infused with winter mint, crushed violets, and raspberries. The shallow topsoil of Cerise results in small, ultra-concentrated berries that provide richness, juiciness, and depth, here balanced by the influence of Demuth’s ridgetop soil, which adds layers of savory complexity. This is a phenomenally bright and ethereal Pinot Noir that will please now and years to come.

Just 100 cases have been earmarked for WineAccess this morning.