After eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Rattage bottle on Friday, I checked my UPS app which said “delivery attempted, will redeliver on Monday”. I thought I had just seen the UPS truck around the corner so I got in the car and having a general idea of the UPS delivery zone from the track my delivery on the UPS app I was able to catch up with the UPS truck around 5 blocks away at around 8pm on Friday night. The UPS guy claimed that he knocked twice and no one answered the door but my garage door was open and someone was home. Anyway I was not about to let a late UPS delivery interfere with my Rattage duties and I was luckily able to successfully intercept the bottle.

This wine has been reviewed by others with more educated palates than mine and from what I can tell, the more educated palates gave the most positive reviews. There are few surprises I can reveal when compared to previous reviews but I will expand upon what has previously been posted including the prior Casemates offering of this wine last year. The color is the expected light purplish lavender of a typical pinot. On the nose there is berry, lavender, spice, and bramble. The approach is subtle and fleeting with some blackberry, blueberry, and vanilla which immediately gives way to a more powerful oak, leather, spice, and some bitterness and tannin on mid palate. The finish is short and is a faint echo of what is experienced on midpalate. This is not a particularly fruit forward pinot and is more complex than what I typically drink. Although the listed pH is 3.7 and pinot pH usually averages 3.5 the perceived acidity favors food pairings rather than summer sipping. I usually do not put pinot noir through an aerator but I did use the Vinturi which opened it up some.

On to the food pairings. Pinot pairs well with nearly everything and Fog and Wind did as well. First pairing was with pepper jack and gouda cheese and made for a pleasant wine and cheese combo. Second pairing was somewhat nontraditional for pinot, tagliatelle Bolognese. The acidity of the wine paired well with the richness of the meaty sauce. On to the Greek lemon chicken and potatoes…Pinot always pairs well with poultry and this was no exception. Final pairing was with milk chocolate with almonds. This is a particularly food friendly wine and easy to pair with.

Final thoughts: This is not a fruit bomb and is more earthy than fruity. The web suggested a drinking window through 2024. I suggest laying these down for a couple of years to see what develops but if you like a more complex earthy pinot out of the bottle it can be consumed now.

You can’t go wrong with a Pinot from Russian River. Some of the best Pinot California has to offer. Right up there with Santa Barbara County (Santa Rita Hills) and Monterey.

What is the relationship between Sojourn and Fog & Wind? Sojourn and Fog & Wind seem independent, however they appear to both source from the same Pinot vineyards?

Any idea on the production size for this wine?

I just pulled a cork…will post some brief notes soon.

Looks like I ordered a 4-pack this when offered last summer. I did open one bottle somewhere along the way and must have liked it because I didn’t make any notes anywhere to avoid it in the future. Taking one for the team tonight…

POP!..to find a Sojourn branded cork.

-Color is translucent medium garnet (typical pinot color, aka “the prettiest shade of red”). No bricking.

-Nose on opening is a little earthy/funky, some alcohol, not much more, but it’s allergy season, so I may be missing things.
After about 10 minutes notes of bright cherry (as I would expect in an RRV Pinot) start to show. For some that bright cherry note always brings a smile to my face. After about 20-25 minutes, nose becomes almost perfumy with bright cherry and strawberry and something floral I can’t identify yet, with a slight underlying earthiness.

-Initial taste was alcohol, non-descript “red” fruit, and some earthy notes. The tannins are mild seem to be well integrated or at least well on their way to integrated/smooth.

A bit later, the fruit starts to show on the palate and there’s a nice acid backbone. I imagine this would be food friendly, but it’s 11pm here…to late to eat much of anything. I will try it with food tomorrow evening. I’m stopping at one glass tonight since it was approaching 11pm when I started, but dang, I really love where the nose is right now. Maybe just another half glass…perhaps I’ll sleep better than usual.

Overall, I think this is a nice pinot. I’ve had better, I’ve had worse. I’d be perfectly happy to drink this any night of the week, share with friends, or gift. I doubt it would blow your winesnob friends’ minds, but I also can’t imagine they’d not at least enjoy it. More to come tomorrow. If I don’t post something by 10m Central, someone reach through the computer and poke me.

So, this wine is or is not the same wine as the Sojourn Wohler Vineyard but just bottled under a different label, or has this not yet been established? A lot of wineries bottle the exact some wine using a different label which sells for less. These usually represent “good” deals. Unless this is the same (just as good) as the Sojourn, I am going to take a pass.