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Russian River Valley · Section through the Sebastopol Hills

Russian River: the old sea floor west of Sebastopol

From the Occidental ridges down through Freestone and the Sebastopol Hills to the Laguna de Santa Rosa, over a sea floor five million years old. Tap a layer to read it.

Swipe the plate sideways to see the whole section.

Schematic. The line runs west to east at about 38.39° N, from the hills west of Occidental to the Laguna de Santa Rosa. Platt, Kanzler and Umino lie 1–3 km off the line and are drawn where they project onto it. The dip of the Wilson Grove Formation and where the Franciscan shows through are simplified; check against the USGS and CGS Santa Rosa 1:100,000 sheet. AVA lines in the top band are approximate. Heights from AWS terrain data. Single vineyards drawn dashed lie off the line and are shown where they project; Schneider and Umino are placed from their published descriptions, not surveyed points.

Key to the ground

3 layers, youngest at the top

    Single vineyards we pour from. Tap one on the plate.

    Why Goldridge country makes Pinot Noir of this cut

    1. Marine air and fog come in from Bodega Bay and the Petaluma Gap, so afternoons are short and nights cool.
    2. Goldridge sandy loam drains fast and holds little, so vines stay small and berries stay small.
    3. The soil is poor in nutrients; vigour is low without much work in the vineyard.
    4. Low hills face every way, so each site sets its own ripening clock within a few miles.

    Did you knowGoldridge soil takes its name from Gold Ridge, west of Sebastopol, where Luther Burbank kept his experiment farm.

    In the book

    Pas Mal wines on this ground

    The western ridges, toward the coast

    • Chardonnay Platt VineyardFlanagan
    • The Beauty of Three ChardonnayFlanagan
    • Pinot Noir Hawk Hill VineyardPress Pause
    • Chardonnay Platt VineyardPurlieu
    • Chardonnay Charles Heintz VineyardSenses Wines
    • Charles Heintz VineyardSenses Wines
    • Chardonnay Platt VineyardYoung Hagen Wines
    • Chardonnay Platt Vineyard Sonoma CoastYoung Hagen Wines

    Sebastopol Hills and Green Valley

    Small Vines, Sebastopol

    Middle Reach and the river benches

    • Beauty of Three Pinot NoirFlanagan
    • Chardonnay Russian River ValleyFlanagan
    • Pinot Noir Sonoma CoastFlanagan
    • The Beauty of Three ChardonnayFlanagan
    • The Beauty of Three Pinot NoirFlanagan
    • Ritchie Vineyard Chardonnay · CLOSEOUTKale David Wines
    • Chardonnay Schneider VineyardPress Pause
    • Chardonnay UV El Diablo VineyardSenses Wines

    Russian River Valley blends

    Sources: USDA soil series description, Goldridge; USGS and California Geological Survey, Santa Rosa 1:100,000 geologic map; Green Valley of Russian River Valley growers' fog notes; Gary Farrell, Schneider Vineyard technical sheet; Platt Vineyard, terroir notes; Williams Selyem, Heintz Vineyard notes; Small Vines, TBH Vineyard notes; AWS Terrain Tiles.