Winter has officially arrived in Sonoma, with the rain year off to an excellent start, with over five inches of rain already. These early winter rains are critical to replenishing the soils, filling our reservoirs, and officially putting to rest any fears of wildfires for the year. We have also had multiple days with 1-2 inches, which is vastly preferable to having all the rain at once, as there is less runoff, and therefore more of the water ends up in the soil or our ponds.

Here at Donum, we are patiently waiting for enough cover crop growth to bring in our sheep, as well as finishing out the secondary fermentations on 2023 red wines, and of course putting the finishing touches on our 2022 wines, which will be bottled in February. After mammoth blending sessions in November and early December, we are thrilled with the way the 2022s have turned out and are excited to share them with you in the coming year.

The very late 2023 harvest finally came to an end with the last pressing and barrel downs in late October, and we are very pleased with the quality of this vintage. The cool, late season allowed for long hang times with low sugar, yielding ripe fruit flavors without excessive alcohol. As we get into tasting the barrels this spring, we will really know what we have, but so far, all signs point to an exceptional vintage.

In this shipment, there are several exciting wines from the 2021 vintage, including the first Home Ranch Pinot Noir, which is a blend from our Carneros Estate fruit but with a slightly riper, juicier profile than our Carneros Estate Pinot Noir. Also included is the 2021 Anderson Valley Pinot Noir, which will be our last version of this bottling before we transition to using fruit from our Savoy Vineyard with the 2023 vintage.

Additionally, there are a pair of extraordinary wines from our Russian River Valley vineyard: the Russian River Valley Pinot Noir and the Russian River Valley Reserve Pinot Noir. The 2021 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir showcases beautiful, lush fruit, while the 2021 Russian River Valley Reserve Pinot Noir offers a more concentrated and complex palate than ever before.

We hope that you enjoy your Winter 2024 allocation wines soon.

Cheers, and thank you for your continued support!

Dan Fishman
Director of Winemaking & Vineyards
Winemaker