WTN: Failla, Enfield

Failla 2015 Sonoma Valley Chardonnay, Chuy Vineyard. Apparently from quite old Wente clone plantings. Smoky lemon curd, minerals, with a slightly unappealing bitter vegetal note on the finish that is either transformed into something else or drowned out by the increasingly strong chorus of other flavors as the wine warms. This is intensely concentrated but not plushly textured, and while it doesn't seem especially well-integrated today, and will benefit from some time for the wood treatment to mellow, I think it has potential with several years of bottle age. Allocations were small and prices were high for this Failla offering, reflecting low yields, and I wound up getting some of this to fill out a case because the Pinots were just so expensive -- despite not having been blown away by the Chardonnays I tasted at the winery. This still doesn't blow me away, but my impressions improved over the course of the bottle, and in the end I'm glad to have a couple more.

Enfield 2015 Coombsville Syrah, Haynes Vineyard. Wanted to try one young. Expressively pretty now, walking a very nice line between floral and savory; fine-grained and well-structured and seemingly with a lot held in reserve too. As tasty as this was, it seems like only a preview of what it will become.

Failla 2015 Sonoma Valley Chardonnay, Chuy Vineyard. Apparently from quite old Wente clone plantings. Smoky lemon curd, minerals, with a slightly unappealing bitter vegetal note on the finish that is either transformed into something else or drowned out by the increasingly strong chorus of other flavors as the wine warms. This is intensely concentrated but not plushly textured, and while it doesn't seem especially well-integrated today, and will benefit from some time for the wood treatment to mellow, I think it has potential with several years of bottle age. Allocations were small and prices were high for this Failla offering, reflecting low yields, and I wound up getting some of this to fill out a case because the Pinots were just so expensive -- despite not having been blown away by the Chardonnays I tasted at the winery. This still doesn't blow me away, but my impressions improved over the course of the bottle, and in the end I'm glad to have a couple more.

Enfield 2015 Coombsville Syrah, Haynes Vineyard. Wanted to try one young. Expressively pretty now, walking a very nice line between floral and savory; fine-grained and well-structured and seemingly with a lot held in reserve too. As tasty as this was, it seems like only a preview of what it will become.

Yup, Patchen.....I've pretty much bailed out on the Failla Pinots & Chards because of the $$'s. I still buy the Estate Syrah, though. And I think the generic SonomaCoast Chard and Pinots are pretty decent values.
Tom

I took a Failla Hirsch Vineyard Pinot to a tasting a few years ago, a 2009 IIRC, and it was one of the most memorable wines I have tasted since. Not cheap at $90, discounted to $70, it was fabulous in a very earthy, forest floor, herbal way with the red fruit in the background. A wine to sniff endlessly. Even at that price I'd buy it again. A very memorable wine.

[David M. Bueker]

Thanks for the preview on the Enfield (I have followed them from the very start), as I have not opened any of my bottles yet.

I am dropping away from the Failla Chards. Went to the "all red" club allotment, which gets me a chance to try their Syrahs.

Thanks for the preview on the Enfield (I have followed them from the very start), as I have not opened any of my bottles yet.

I am dropping away from the Failla Chards. Went to the "all red" club allotment, which gets me a chance to try their Syrahs.

Pffffttttt...in my finest Bill The Cat accent.
Tom

[David M. Bueker]

Knew that would get you, but according to John Lockwood, I am the original member for Enfield.

FWIW, I had a very nice exchange with the sales manager at Failla about the steep price increases for the 2015 vintage. He didn't exactly promise that this was only a one-time, temporary price bump, though it seems that might turn out to be the case. But he did explain more than I had any right to expect about how they'd made the decision, about how the year's dramatically lower yields might have squeezed them out of their existing vineyard contracts, and so on. I didn't feel like he was selling me some story -- and it's not like I'm some huge quantity purchaser or long-time loyal customer who's been following them from the very start! So, I have less Hirsch Pinot than I would've liked this year (and the Hirsch is the one that blew me away in the tasting room too, Jim); but so does everyone, and I'm okay with that -- and impressed with how they do business.

[David M. Bueker]

2015 Enfield in my glass right now. Good, but tons of potential.