Brooks Note Winery in the Petaluma Gap

In his two previous appearances, Garry and Dan discuss the characteristics of the Petaluma Gap in great detail. They also tell the story of how it became an official AVA.

Brooks Note Winery is in the Petaluma Gap, where the Wine to Wine Festival is coming soon. It is a great public tasting to help raise awareness of this sub-region of the Sonoma Coast. The united winemakers of the Petaluma Gap have i it an official AVA. Brooks Note makes cold climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, but also Riesling and Albariño.

The Brooks Note vineyard is near the Sonoma Raceway. Garry has brought an Albariño. The varietal grows in Portugal and Spain. It has has a lemon peel, honey and spice components, and a trace of muscat. It also has good acidity. The vines get blasted from the wind coming off the Pacific Ocean. As the air inland heats up, it pulls wind in that crosses Hwy 1 and blows toward Petaluma. The wind slows down photosynthesis so the vines take longer to ripen.

Azaya Ranch

Garry has also brought a Pinot Noir from Azaya Ranch. It is just across the Marin – Sonoma border, on the Marin side. It gets cold fog. Another vineyard is southwest of Sebastopol, which also gets a little bit of fog. Brooks Note also makes a GSM – Grenache, Syrah and Mourvedre – from the Sebastopol Hills.

Then they taste some Pinot Noir. First is a 2024 Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir. It comes from three vineyards. Taylor’s Crown, in the northeast corner of the Petaluma Gap, has compressed volcanic ash. Panther Ridge is a biodynamic vineyard at about 1000 feet of elevation. It has big red chunks of pumice and basalt throughout the vineyard. The third is Sweet Family Vineyard, at about 750 feet elevation. It also has volcanic soil. The vines struggle and the soil is well drained. Garry used about 20% new oak, and about 15% whole cluster. Dan and Garry agree that this is what Petaluma Gap is supposed to taste like. 🍷