2019 Keller Pinot Noir "Reserve"

Sourced from both Bürgel and Frauenberg, this cuvée, explains Keller, “reflects diverse genetics but generally younger vines,” ones planted at extreme density in keeping with the evolution of his thinking about how to achieve top-quality Pinot Noir “by insuring that the roots will go really deep.” The color is a healthy, not-too-dark red. On the nose, cherry and purple plum are accented by arbor vita as well as a bit of woody smokiness and incense. The mid-palate is polished, and the lingering finish exhibits a sense of chalky suffusion as well as somber piquant shadings of fruit pit and burley tobacco.