Review: Ron Rubin, Russian River Valley Pinot Noir

The Russian River Valley is known for outstanding Pinot Noir, bursting with bright red fruit flavors, elegant, vibrant and just plain scrumptious. That’s exactly what Ron Rubin delivers in this Russian River Valley Pinot Noir.

Pinot Noir is a finicky grape variety, for which the vineyard site is critically important. The Russian River Valley, by and large, has the right conditions for Pinot Noir, hence it’s reputation. But even within the Russian River Valley there are nuances in the climate and soil conditions from vineyard to vineyard and those differences are revealed in the wine. Ron Rubin has 6.5 acres of Pinot Noir vineyards on their Green Valley estate, but also source grapes from other growers in the region. This allows them to blend Pinot Noir with differing characteristics together to create a dynamic and well-balanced wine.

Everything about this wine is beautiful. The label design is classy and fun. The color of the wine is a bright, jewel-like red. The aromas, the flavors all deliver. And yet, it’s reasonably priced.

This wine smells elegant and delicious. It has a nice balance of fruit, spice and earthiness, offering bright cherry, cranberry, vanilla, nutmeg and leather aromas. On the palate it brings a harmonious blend of tart cherry, cranberry, red apple peel and baking spice flavors with vibrant acidity. A touch of tannins give an ever-so-slight astringency to the mouthfeel, adding to the elegance of this wine. The finish is really long, with cherry and spice flavors lingering on and on.

Wine: Ron Rubin, Russian River Valley, Pinot Noir
Varieties: 100% Pinot Noir
Vintage: 2017
Alcohol: 13.7%
Rating: 90
Average price: $25
Disclosure: This wine was received as a media sample.