Beverage of the Week (BOW)
Tongue Dancer Wines Foxtrot Pinot Noir Russian River Valley 2021
Product Story
This is the second vintage of Tongue Dancer Wines’ (TDW) Foxtrot. They describe it as a fun-to-drink dance of a wine and we agree. Albeit the second installment of Foxtrot it’s a first in many respects as last year’s inaugural Foxtrot was sourced from the Anderson Valley while this year’s wine hails from Lakeview Vineyard located in the Green Valley area of Russian River Valley. Jim MacPhail has been working with fruit from this vineyard since 2007 and now it has found its way into a TDW bottle. While we were initially concerned by the change of fruit source we quickly learned that this vintage did not miss a step. The grapes were hand-picked on the morning of August 28 and gently de-stemmed — not crushed. Thrice daily punchdowns and could fermenting temperatures insured depth and a fruit-forward wine. The wine spent 11 months on the lies in French oak — 33% new oak. It was bottled unfined and lightly filtered in August of 2022. The resulting wine is truly exceptional. This wine is being released Tuesday, March 7. Get it now or miss the boat!
Brand Story
Tongue Dancer Wines is the creation of James and Kerry MacPhail. If you are a California Pinot Noir lover you likely know James' previous work with MacPhail Family Wines. James knows how to make amazing Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and James knows a lot of people who grow spectacular Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. We have been reviewing the wines from Tongue Dancer for the better part of a decade and we have never seen a Tongue Dancer Wine fail to earn Four-Stars or better. Tongue Dancer is constantly innovating, releasing new wines every year while never missing a beat. Last year they surprised us with the release of a great, dry cider! This is a winery to watch. The wines are always in short supply so be swift. Visit their website and join their mailing list to get direct access to their wines.
Tasting Note
Brilliant, deep ruby color. The aromatics are pleasingly intense, offering scents of red cherry and wild berries with supporting notes of slate, dried herbs, black tea, and forest floor. The palate echoes the nose delivering a red and black fruits-driven core with flavors of raspberry, black fruits, earth, and truffle. The finish is long and lingering with supple tannins. Medium to full-bodied and perfectly balanced with an opulent texture.
How to Serve
This wine really needs nothing but a glass but it is extremely food friendly and will flourish with anything from the grill.
Price: $ 40
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