B Kosuge 2021 Pinot Noir “The Shop” Carneros, Napa Valley 95+ Points

FMW 95+ Points: “The 2021  The Shop showcases a ruby color and offers up bright aromas of bing cherries, orange zest, a touch of rose petals, and raspberries.  The wine is medium to full in body, with a very well-balanced fruit/acid ratio, hints of red fruits, a whiff of savory spices,  and great freshness.  The wine has a long, silky-grained tannin finish. A real crowd pleaser, and a great value all together. Only 4 barrels were produced of this great vintage”

Byron Kosuge notes: “ I don’t make The Shop the same way I used to. For the first 10 years, my goal was to take the most unpretentious approach possible. Moderate ripeness, modest levels of new oak, focus on aroma and balance, not a lot of winemaking tricks. The kind of wine I wanted to drink. Although it is still the kind of wine I want to drink I have pretty much reinvented how I make it. Some of the elements are the same–native yeast fermentation, liberal use of whole clusters, and little or no new oak. For the last 10 years now I have been aging it in a combination of concrete, regular-sized oak barrels, and larger format barrels. these things have been important but the main thing is that my focus has shifted towards freshness, purity, and energy. I’ve always somewhat taken color and richness for granted in Carneros–it’s warm there, and those things come easily–but now I rarely give those things a second thought. Much more important are those elusive aforementioned qualities. 2021 shows quite well how this wine has evolved. I suspect a few of my early supporters may no longer like the style of the wine, but hopefully most of those who have been drinking this wine in the nearly 20 years I have been making it will appreciate how the wine, and its maker, have evolved. The crop was light in 2021, only 104 cases of this wine were made.