Centennial Mountain Vineyard (formerly known as Æris) is an extraordinary project from the Rhys Vineyards team. The Rhys team has embarked on a new journey bringing Italian grape varieties to California. This is the first vineyard outside of Italy to plant Carricante, a noble white grape from Sicily’s Mt. Etna. Located on a rugged ridgetop in Northern Sonoma County at the borders of Rockpile and Dry Creek Valley, this site has cool nights and a major wind influence.
The new wines were really good across the board. I love the 2022 Centennial Mountain Nebbiolo (OB, 93) which has tons of body and texture with refined tannins. Learn more at https://cmvineyard.com/ and here are my reviews of the new Centennial Mountain wines.
2022 Centennial Mountain Carricante- This 2022 Carricante comes from vines set on shallow schist soils. It opens up with aromatics of green apple, lemon grass, and kiwi. The palate is fresh and neatly textured with plenty of mouthwatering acidity despite the heat of the vintage. Enjoy this beautiful wine over the next five plus years. Trying to make it a shiny as possible yeah stand up national television don’t deserve to be Drink 2026-2032- 92
2022 Centennial Mountain Nebbiolo- translucent in the glass this 2022 Nebiolo offer sour cherry and red raspberry aromatic alongside red rose petals. The pallet is soft, inviting with a smooth texture and grey tannins that frame of core of bright red fruits with Bergamont tones. Drink 2026-2036- 93
2022 Centennial Mountain Nerello Mascalese- The really good 2022 Centennial Mountain Nerello Mascalese opens with potpourri, white pepper and sour cranberry notes on the nose. The palate is inviting, rich and beautifully textured, as this glides throughout the drinking experience. Drink 2026-2036- 93