Mission Codename Silver linings
Say it ain’t so!!
COHO, one of our all-time favorites…is…going the way of the dinosaurs.
Finished. Gone. Extinct.
The same COHO Robert Parker once raved about: “COHO are all big, overt and totally delicious…”
This Pinot fits that description for sure. 92 points, “rich and layered”, and shedding nearly half its original price for one last hurrah.
A favorite year after year, COHO always delivers. Easily an all-time top QPR. Priced fairly upon release, and absurdly when we offer it. Over the last decade we’ve dropped dozens of deals. Moved stacks of pallets… but sadly, the supply has dried up. For good. Swimming upstream against the current during and after the pandemic took its toll, apparently.
There will be no new wines from them after this one, ever again. 😢
COHO has a well-earned reputation for wines that punch way above their weight class. Proprietor Gary Lipp focused on Napa Valley’s highly acclaimed southernly sub-appellations, where cooler temperatures enable the fruit to develop concentrated flavors at ripe sugar levels with refreshing, balancing acidity. Of course, it helps to have winemaker Phillip Titus along for the ride. A name you may recall from his longstanding work at Chappellet, where he consistently reels in massive scores all the way up to 100 points.
Stanly Ranch is a special site on the eastern edge of the Napa side of Carneros, a continuation of a strip of cool climate vineyards you’ve very well heard of: Hyde, Saintsbury, and Etude.
The perfume fills not only the glass but an entire room with a bouquet of gingerbread, candied fig, plum compote, and pomegranate molasses. Ripe red cherry, strawberry rhubarb pie, fruitcake, potpourri, and toffee fill in the mid-palate towards a robust finish, accentuating a riper mouthfeel than most Pinot Noir, while remaining lush and silky smooth. Could easily stand up to a richer fare such as beef Bourguignon!
Originally a $65 wine and very well worth it. But at half off it’s bound to go fast.
Again, this is the VERY LAST WINE WE WILL EVER SEE FROM COHO – land some while it’s here!
92 Points – James Suckling
“Notes of raspberries, strawberries, baking spices and dried flowers. Medium-bodied with plush tannins. Juicy and fruity with floral and spicy character on the finish. Rich and layered. Drink or hold.”
What the Winery Says
2018 Stanly Ranch Los Carneros Pinot Noir
- Winemaker
- Phil Titus
- Varietal
- Pinot Noir
- Vintage
- 2018
- Alcohol
- 14.4%
- Appellation
- Los Carneros, Napa Valley
- Vineyard
- Stanly Ranch Vineyard
- Clones
- Dijon 115, 667, 777
- Pre-fermentation
- 4 days cold soak at 55 °F
- Pressing
- 7 days after crush
- Fermentation
- Romanée-Conti yeast selection
- Aging
- 10 months
- Barrels
- 40% new French oak
- Production
- 12 barrels