Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1037369
118 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2018 WINE #3: BRAVIUM 2015 PINOT NOIR, ANDERSON VALLEY, CALIFORNIA ($32) Presented by Derek Rohlffs, Winemaker for Bravium Translated from Latin, Bravium means a prize or reward. Fittingly, the third wine, with its classic and easily identiable Pinot Noir character, was certainly a gift for our blind tasters after sev - eral challenging rounds. Bravium carefully se - lects its Pinot Noir grapes from three vineyards in Mendocino County's An - derson Valley: Donnelly Creek, Ridge, and Wiley. Donnelly Creek, a lovely 80-acre site in a warmer pocket of the appellation, pro- duces riper fruit, which adds plushness to the blend. Ridge Vineyard, a family-owned site at Valley Foothills planted to 30-year-old Jackson clone Pinot Noir, delivers grapes of exceptional avor and structure. Meanwhile, in the famed and westernmost "Deep End" corner of the valley, the historic Wiley Vineyard is a true cool-climate site that rests on benchlands just 10 miles from the Pacic Ocean. According to Bravium Winemaker Derek Rohlffs, the property is renowned for its bucolic set - ting and pristine fruit, a benchmark of the appellation. The 2015 growing season at the winery was marked by early bud break, berry shatter, and smaller-than-usual grape size, which resulted in lower yields and excellent avor concentration. Harvest kicked off early in late August, with picking unfolding at night to preserve freshness and acidity. The characteristics of the resulting wine epitomize the terms "elegant," "exotic," and "vivacious." An alluring bou - quet of aromas—strawberry rhubarb, rose petal, raspberry, wild berry, crushed rock, and wood smoke—blossom from the glass. On the palate, plush, clean, and juicy sensations give way to pleasing notes of strawberry, orange peel, and oral blooms lacing a bed of silky tannins and a chalky, mineral-driven core. As he concluded his reveal, Rohlffs described the vintage as "classic Anderson Valley nesse . . . a beautifully balanced Pinot Noir that, while enjoyable in its youth, possesses impressive aging potential." WINE #4: BERONIA 2009 GRAN RESERVA, RIOJA ALTA, SPAIN ($30) Presented by Christopher Laveglia, Area Sales Manager for González Byass USA Founded in 1973 and named after the Celtic Berones tribe, which occupied the Rioja region of Spain in the third century, the Beronia winery lies in the Rioja Alta subregion. Surrounded by 25 hectares of estate vineyards planted mostly to Tem - pranillo, including pre-phylloxera parcels of vines more than a century old, it thrives largely due to the region's Atlantic climate and gypsum/alluvial clay soils. An additional 870 vineyard hectares are under contract and managed by Beronia's technical team. All grapes for the González Byass USA brand are hand-harvested parcel by parcel under the watchful eye of Winemaker Matias Calleja: The 2009 vintage, classied by the Rioja Regulatory Council as "Very Good," saw harvest begin at the end of September and conclude the second week of October. Produced from a selection of the highest-quality grapes from the oldest vines (98% Tempranillo; 2% Graciano), the Beronia Gran Reserva presented at Game of Wines ages in new French oak barrels. The maturation regiment requires the wine to spend 28 months in new wood followed by 36 months of bottle-aging before release. Upon unveiling the Beronia bottle from its blind-tasting bag, González Byass USA Area Sales Manager Christopher Laveglia described the 2009 Gran Reserva as "powerful yet graceful and elegant." Indeed, the wine delivers intense avors of dried fruit, to - bacco, and sweet spices. Full-bodied with grippy yet pliable tannins, the palate buzzed with a freshness that served to lift dark notes of black cherry, smoke, vanilla bean, and dark- chocolate–covered plums. "With its different aromatics and tannin texture, I thought a Rioja aged in new French oak would be a nice curveball for the competition," Laveglia said. Derek Rohlffs, Winemaker for Bravium. Christopher Laveglia of González Byass USA with the Beronia 2009 Gran Reserva.