At the blending table after the 2008 vintage, I finally figured out that most of the wines that seemed “Alazan worthy” were from three specific parts of the vineyard. These three sites were all planted to what, in Chile, is known as the “Valdivieso” selection of Pinot Noir. (For those of you who are not familiar with selections and clones, all grapevines are propagated from cuttings (as opposed to seeds) so that the progeny are genetically identical to the parent. A group of vines that is descended from the same mother plant is called a clone.) Valdivieso, as we generally call it, is a headache for the grower because it is a shy bearer and difficult to farm. Its clusters are scraggly, with small berries. It ripens unevenly. But it makes wine with that elusive combination of power and silkiness that is the hallmark of good Pinot Noir. We generally go into the blending process with open minds, and taste the individual lots “blind,”without knowing what they are. But year after year, Valdivieso makes the cut. And starting with the 2008 vintage, Alazan is almost exclusively from Valdivieso.

What we’re after with Alazan is not to make the “biggest” wine possible. Instead, we’re trying to make something that’s the absolute best expression of Pinot Noir our vineyard has to offer. That’s why it’s a blend—depending upon the season, some parts of the vineyard might do better than others. The 2008 Alazan is fairly ripe. Almost Californian, in fact, although with a touch of the savory notes that I’ve come to learn are typical of Pinot grown in our vineyard. It definitely needs to be decanted to show its best. With a little air, black fruits come to the fore, with some Asian five spice and brown sugar notes. Fairly powerful stuff.

Making wine is definitely a journey. 2008 was the sixth vintage of Alazan. While I think several of the previous vintages have been quite good--even outstanding--only in the past year or two do I feel like I am fully understanding what Pinot Noir from the Kingston vineyard has to offer and how best to express it.