We stopped at Toulouse Vineyards in the Anderson Valley on the first day of our latest California trip. The tasting room staff at Roederer highly recommended the place, so we thought we’d give it a shot. I hadn’t previously heard of Toulouse, they are fairly new with their first vintage being made in 2002. Total, the winery produces about 2600 cases a year.
Upon entering, we were greeted by owner Vern and the winery dog Tess who directed us into the barn for a tasting. We picked the right day to come, they were just wrapping up harvesting olives, so Matt got to sample the wares!
Everyone was very friendly and seemed genuinely happy that we had stopped by. Including a tiny new bundle of white fur that was joining the winery dog staff. The new puppy didn’t seem to want us to leave and kept following us to our car!
2007 Rose of Pinot Noir: $22. Roses, watermelon, strawberry, dry. I really liked this one and we took home 2 bottles.
2007 Estate Riesling: $22. Floral peach, honey, light.
2007 Gewuartraminer: $22. Spicy, floral, fruity, honey, acidic, good structure.
2007 Pinot Gris: $22. Pear, peach, citrus, very nice fruit. 3 bottles came back to VA with us.
2006 Pinot Noir: $39. Cherry, leather, spice, earth, very light, tannic. Good, needs time.
2005 Estate Pinot Noir: $39. Fruitier then the 2006. Plum, cherry, bright fruit, vanilla, berries, maple syrup on the finish. We bought one bottle.
2003 Estate Pinot Noir: Raisins, sweet, almost port like, smooth cherry, very nice.
Overall, I thought all of the wines were solid and well done. I can easily recommend a stop at Toulouse, both for the wines and for the hospitality. And not to mention the dogs 🙂
Filed under: California, Toulouse, Vineyards |
Wannabe Wino Wine Blog 
You are living my dream! I love visiting wineries. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
Thanks for commenting! I love to visit them too, I wish we could go out to CA more often!
I had the good fortune to visit Vern at Toulouse after receiving a heartily enthusiastic recommendation from Toby Hill at Phillips Hill Estates. It was an impossibly beautiful sunny March day in the Anderson Valley, so you didn’t have to twist my arm to get me to stop by. Vern was as gracious, accommodating and downright generous of a host as you could ever hope to meet. The wines were marvelous, especially the 2006 & 2007 Pinot Noirs, and the 2008 Pinot Gris. Actually, everything was great, you can’t go wrong here in terms of quality. And there’s no more relaxed, laid-back and enjoyable place to spend a gorgeous afternoon drinking great wines. Thanks Vern!