GFG Vineyard
A west facing knoll of 1.25 acres just above the Russian River in Forestville. Dry farmed, with morning fog giving way to full afternoon sun, it grows Pinot Noir with brightness and lift. The 2024 is our first release from this ground.
A Site That Found Us
GFG came to us through friends in the industry who knew the property owners and had watched what we were doing at Nozzari. The vineyard had been cared for by friendly neighbors for years, and in 2024 we took over the farming ourselves. Its planting date and clones are part of the mystery. What we did know was the ground, and what it could become.
What The Site Is
Beneath the vines is Goldridge, the same fine sandy loam that anchors Nozzari, laid down by an ancient seabed millions of years ago. Same ground, opposite climate: here the sun does the work the fog does in the hills.
A Different Kind Of Challenge
Nozzari challenges us in the farming. GFG challenged us in the cellar. A warm, sun soaked site is not the kind of place our style of winemaking usually calls home, and that was exactly the point: a new take on Pinot Noir from the opposite end of our world.
We picked early to hold onto freshness. The long afternoons ripen the stems as well as the fruit, which let us ferment 100% whole cluster. Aging on the full gross lees fills out the mid palate, and keeping the wine under 13% alcohol balances the riper red fruit with energy and lift.
