High-toned coastal Pinot aromas grab the attention: bright bing cherry, darker black raspberry and red apple skin — expressive and alluring. Cherry compote, tobacco leaf, sandalwood and peppercorn savory complexity. A core of exotic wild berry fruit opens the palate with minerals, pine needle notes and a cocoa dusting. Full and broad in the mouth but always supple and vibrant. Great structure — black tea tannins and Asian spices on the lifted, energetic finish.

The natural energy of the 2015 vintage is on full display, deeply focused and juicy. All kinds of fruit preserves are captured here — cherry, raspberry, strawberry and rhubarb — sweet, tempting and delicious. The high-elevation coastal environment adds a touch of exotic mountain pine spice. The tannins are lacy and seamless and lively acidity brings clarity and focus as the waves of fruit rise and fall. It’s a really compelling combination, and one that can only be achieved on a small scale as it takes a truly rare vineyard site that's farmed and then harvested with great precision.

RP 95: Barrel aged for 11 months on its fine lees, in 45% new Chassin oak, the 2015 Pinot Noir Connor offers a pale to medium ruby-purple color and opens with an incredibly perfumed nose of violets, roses and lavender, over a bright core of red cherries and cranberries plus wafts of Provence herbs and forest floor. The medium-bodied palate is packed with finesse, offering intense red fruit and floral notes supported by fine-grained tannins and a lively backbone, finishing long. (LPB)   (2/2017)

VM 92: The 2015 Pinot Noir Connor Joy Road Vineyard will give readers a good indication as to the level of quality in this vintage. Black cherry, plum, licorice, herb and lavender are front and center. Succulent and expressive, but also medium in body, the 2015 is a wonderfully complete wine. Although quite attractive now, the 2015 has enough structure and tannin to drink well for a number of years. The Connor is the only 2015 Pinot that was bottled before the 2016 harvest. (AG)   (1/2017)