Cobb Wines: Playing the ‘Pinot Noir long-game’

The first Cobb wine, sourced from what is now named the 'Diane Cobb' block at Coastlands vineyard. It spent 15 months in French oak, 50%...

The second wine made at Cobb and, like the 2001, it comes from what is now called the 'Diane Cobb' block. It spent 15 months...

Low yields in Coastlands coincided with the introduction of the Rice-Spivak vineyard into the Cobb lineup, resulting in this rare, non-single-vineyard offering. It spent 16...

This was the first bottling from the Emmaline Ann vineyard, which tends to produce a more delicate and silky wine compared to Coastlands. The wine...

Jumping to 2009, we see a different phase in the Cobb winemaking regimen, one that began with the 2006 vintage. The wines spend more time...

Another example of 2009 being approached with a feather touch. It spent 20 months in French oak, 30% new. It's perfumed, fresh and racy, with...

There was a substantial reduction in yield as a result of the challenging 2011 vintage - only 75 cases were produced. The wine has a...

Another yield-affected wine from the 2011 vintage, I found this to be the most delicate in the tasting. It has an enthralling nose of potting...

A world apart from the 2011, and the winery’s most popular release, the 2012 Diane Cobb Pinot Noir spent 22 months in French oak, 40%...

Out of an extensive tasting of both new releases and library vintages, this was the knockout of the lineup. Aged for 22 months in French...

This has a focussed and slightly reductive nose of dried roses, gunpowder and matchbook, while orange zest and cranberry carry the palate through to the...

Not unlike the radiant 2013, this is open for business right away, but is a touch more angular and floral throughout. Sage, root beer, and...

Here we have a great example of Cobb’s extended barrel-ageing regimen: the wine spent 34 months in barrel using 30% new oak. The power and...

This wine is a pleasure to check in on, and causes you to appreciate Ross Cobb’s policy of holding wines in the bottle until he...

After tasting several older Emmaline Ann Pinots, I love the subtle reduction that tends to be found early on, and which will bring a lovely...

The youngest wine present at the tasting, it spent 22 months in French oak, 30% new. It displays constantly evolving aromas of sandalwood, petrichor and...

The centerpiece of the Cobb Pinot Noirs. Bright, beaming and spice-driven. Notes of fresh raspberry, sage, lilies and clove on the nose. The palate is...

Sourced from a clonal nursery test-block planted in 1989. Tobacco, tree sap, and rose petals on the nose. The palate is deft and lifted with...

This site typically shows off power and persistence with a deft touch, and the excellent, drama-free 2018 vintage follows suit. Aromas of rose petals, hibiscus...

Showing its elegant side in 2017, the nose is filled with dark cherries, raspberries, and the signature Sonoma Coast note of bay laurel. The mid-palate...

A darker, more brooding iteration of this classic Sonoma Coast site. Aromas include pomegranate peel, sassafras, and anise. Its texture is deep and broad but...

<p>Doc’s Ranch sits directly opposite Coastlands Vineyard, and yields a more powerful, broad-shouldered Pinot Noir than that of its neighbour. Of the two clone-specific releases...

The Pommard & 114 Selection from Doc’s Ranch is the most forward of the 2018 Cobb Pinot Noirs, showcasing the power and black-fruited profiles these...

Immediately accessible and generous, this is the most punchy and forward wine within the Cobb lineup. It is dense and layered on the nose, with...

The sleeper of the 2017 Cobb lineup. The nose is equal parts dark-fruited, smouldering and floral. The palate shows off notes of rose petals, nectarine...

Always true to its feminine name, the 2018 Emmaline Ann Pinot Noir is a textbook showing of the most understated and seductive wine in the...

Pure and vibrant on the nose, showing notes of lavender, rose water and conifer. The weightless texture typical of this site is here in spades,...

As floral and feminine as ever, the nose shows its usual lavender, cherry blossom and sandalwood aromas. Bing cherries and pomegranates make up the soft...

As with the 2015 Jack Hill, the 2016 vintage has a lot of twists and turns in its trajectory. It is ripe and punchy on...

A multifaceted and ever-changing wine. Aromas of cranberry, orange rind, red plums and sea spray lead to a palate with a savoury weightlessness which fattens...

With each new vintage of Monticue Vineyard comes a more complete wine, and the fortunate ease of the 2018 vintage has taken this site to...

2016 marks the first Cobb release of the Monticue Vineyard. It spends 22 months in 30% new French oak, stylistically falling somewhere between the elegance...

Aromas of red cherries, birch and dried cardamom lead to a racy texture, succulent at first then expanding greatly on the palate after some time...

The darkest and richest of the 2016 Cobb Pinot Noirs, with black cherries, liquorice, gunpowder and steel wool on the nose. The palate lightens up...

Ripe but precise in 2015, this classic Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir displays notes of pomegranates and silky cherries which carry through the palate. Creme brûlée...

<p>Noticeably more powerful, firm and dense than the various Sonoma Coast releases, this example from Anderson Valley in Mendocino County has dark fruit and woodsy...