This weekend's flight, ANTHILL FARMS WINERY!
Flight of 3 wines: $20 tasting (healthy 2.5 oz pours!)
Here is the primer!
ANTHILL FARMS WINERY
"We didn't know whether the name was really great or really dumb," admits Anthill Farms Winery partner Web Marquez. "It came about because we're all winemakers and people would see us all scrambling around trying to grab the same hose at once; they said it was like watching a bunch of ants."
The partners (trio of ants) themselves farm many of the small plots where they buy their grapes, and the results of this labor of love are remarkably seductive wines that combine concentration and finesse.
The three ower/winemaker musketeers comprise the entirety of Anthill Farms, and they come from three different parts of the country: Web Marquez (Virginia), Anthony Filliberti (Sonoma) and Dave Lowe (Kansas). They met by serendipity as twenty-somethings back in 2003 when they independently landed jobs as cellar rats at one of the pinnacles of California Pinot, Williams-Selyem. After their first crush had finished, they took a road trip together to Oregon, driving up the coast to visit wineries in the Willamette Valley. The trip ended with great plans for the future and a cult Pinot Noir producer was born.
The Anthill 'guys' are part of a second or possibly third generation that's redefining California Pinot Noir. Most of these winemakers have day jobs at larger wineries and pursue their passion for small production Pinot Noir on the side. With some exceptions, they don't own wineries or vineyards. And many make big, jammy zins and cabs for their employers, but the new Pinot Noir paradigm emphasizes balance and restraint over power and volume. This is the Anthill story.
ANTHILL's geographic focus is the Anderson Valley, the Sonoma Coast and the Russian River Valley. The wines are concentrated but not overly rich and also have that racy acidity you'll find from the Sonoma Coast. The wines have a purity and complexity that we rarely see in New World Pinot Noir - a style more akin to the great wines of Burgundy.
Anthill's properties are managed with intensive and meticulous farming practices, with minimal ecological impact. They emphasize gentle handling from crushing to bottling, judicious use of oak, and, perhaps most importantly, leaving the wine alone as much as possible.
We are huge fans of these wonderfully expressive, beautiful wines and are thrilled to be releasing the newest vintage from Anthill Farms this weekend!
Join us for our showcase flight this weekend.