Iconic 2022 Williams Selyem Wines in Stock!

ICONIC PINOT NOIRS ARE HERE!

"Burt Williams and Ed Selyem began making wine in a garage in 1979, and in less than two decades, they had created a cult-status winery that put Sonoma’s Russian River Valley on the world stage for Pinot Noir. The memorable, flavorful wines are hand-crafted from the impeccably sourced grapes, with a meticulous, detail-oriented winemaking style that emphasizes natural processes over intervention. The results are pure, exceptional wines that are unrivaled in quality. Jeff Mangahas and his team are committed to the same philosophy that served Burt and Ed so well: forging and maintaining relationships with the best growers, purchasing and growing only the best fruit, and coaxing the best wine out of each vintage. This year, we have the inaugural offering of their Anderson Valley Pinot Noir. We get a tiny allocation of these wines, and they just arrived in the store. We have some of the best prices in the country - first come, first served!" – Glen Knight, The Wine House

Highlighted wines:
2022 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Central Coast, $71.99, 2 or more: $59.99

2022 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Anderson Valley, $93.99, 2 or more: $79.99

2022 Williams Selyem Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast, $102.99, 2 or more: $84.99

2 or more sale prices are the best in the country and good through Friday, March 22 (or while supplies last).

See all 2022 Williams Selyem wines we have in stock!

WINEMAKER COMMENTS
Notes of plum and purple flowers combine with wood spices to showcase this elegant offering. Hints of dried herbs add a wonderful counterpoint to the fruit and floral aromatics. Easy to drink and approachable with the soft tannin structure and seamless acidity. With an already round palate architecture, the wine can be enjoyed young, but certainly will hold for several years.

TECHNICAL NOTES
Barrel Description: 35% new, 34% 1yr., 31% 2 yr.
Barrel Aged: 11 months
pH: 3.60
TA: 0.55g/100mL
Alc: 13.5%

WINEMAKER COMMENTS
The inaugural offering of the Anderson Valley Pinot Noir showcases one of the outstanding regions of the North Coast. Williams Selyem has made wines from Anderson Valley for decades, from Ferrington to Burt Williams’ Morning Dew Ranch to Savoy, which all highlight the uniqueness of the region in their own ways. With a large diurnal temperature shift and a long growing season, the flavor profile is unique. Sourced from multiple vineyards, our inaugural offering is prototypical with blue fruits, black cherry, and fresh herbs. The long growing season allows for a refinement to the tannin structure while maintaining a sense of levity due to the acid freshness. The finish is lovely and compelling with a sensation of cherry stone.

THE VINEYARDS
The Pinot Noir for this blend was sourced from the following vineyards: Conzelman, Ferrington, and Purcell.

TECHNICAL NOTES
Barrel Description: 50% new, 50% 1yr.
Barrel Aged: 11 months
pH: 3.41
TA: 0.60g/100mL
Alc: 14.1%

WINEMAKER COMMENTS
Brooding and darker in profile compared to the Russian River Valley bottling, the Sonoma Coast is a completely different animal. Plum, dried herbs and savory undertones complete the darker aromatic profile. Full bodied at the entry, the palate becomes saturated with flavors of plum and brambly fruits. The mid-palate weight is compelling, and the firmness of the tannins seem to melt to the extract of the wine. The palate is then refreshed with enough acidity that carries the wine to the finish with a lingering hint of a sous bois character.

THE VINEYARDS
The Pinot Noir for this blend was sourced from the following vineyards: Drake, Falstaff, Starkey, and Terra de Promissio.

TECHNICAL NOTES
Barrel Description: 40% new, 60% 1yr.
Barrel Aged: 11 months
pH: 3.53
TA: 0.60g/100mL
Alc: 13.5%

FROM THE WINERY

HARVEST 2022

The 2022 growing season experienced epic drought conditions, with the first half of the calendar year being one of the driest on record. Most of the rainfall came in November and December, saturating the soil, and setting the stage for the early part of the year. With a full soil moisture profile and moderate temperatures in the early spring, bud break started around historical average. Many frost nights ensued, which impacted early season growth and slowed down shoot elongation, creating some unevenness. The cool period in and around flowering further prolonged the flowering cycle and created a wide degree of variability. The unsettled weather in general ranged from cool temperatures to occasional rain showers to a freak hailstorm in early May. The remainder of the season was thankfully moderate, and harvest started on historical average in early August. The key to success in 2022 was the selective thinning of shoots and fruit to reduce the variation, tightening the window of ripening. Due to the complexities of the growing season, the wines show excellent structure and verve, with typical site specificity, and all in all a terrific vintage with aging potential.

ABOUT WILLIAMS SELYEM

Like most good stories, the history of Williams Selyem owes much to serendipity. If a grower with an abundance of fruit hadn’t given Burt Williams a few tons of free grapes in the 1970s, Burt might never have discovered his love and flair for winemaking. And if Burt and his partner Ed Selyem had been able to afford the French Burgundies they both favored, they might never have tried making their own Pinot Noir.

The two friends didn’t set out to produce wines for anyone but themselves. And they surely never imagined that their humble experiment in home winemaking would spawn a cult-status winery of international acclaim. Together, Burt and Ed set a new standard for American-made Pinot Noir, and elevated Sonoma County’s Russian River Valley to among the best wine growing regions in the world.