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Wine Enthusiast Advance Buying Guide
Goldeneye 2020 Gowan Creek Vineyard Pinot Noir - 93 Points
Bright, fresh and vibrant, this wine has a fine-grained tannic texture. It bursts with beautifully nuanced notes of cranberry juice, boysenberry jam...Read More »
San Francisco Chronicle
Goldeneye is Anderson Valley’s most formal tasting experience — though then again, this easygoing valley has a low bar for formality. The winery, named for the Goldeneye duck, is part of a group of duck... Read More »
Food and Wine Website
Love Champagne? Try These 25 Bottles of American Sparkling Wine
Cranberries and raspberries burst from the glass with each sip of this rosé from Goldeneye, and are framed by taut acid, minerality,and yeasty notes of cobbler shell.... Read More »
Robb Report Website
November 2023
7 Outstanding Pinot Noirs to Buy Now Right Now
2019 Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Gowan Creek Vineyard
Dan and Margaret Duckhorn were among the first to recognize Anderson Valley as a perfect place to grow Pinot Noir and the founded Goldeneye in 1996. Winemaker Kristen McMahan agrees. “There is a slower, more serene pace here in the Anderson Valley,” she says. “And more than almost any other region, there is a connection between the quality of the wines and the character of the valley.”
Wine Enthusiast Advance Buying Guide
December 2023
Goldeneye 2020 Gowan Creek Vineyard Pinot Noir - 93 Points
Bright, fresh and vibrant, this wine has a fine-grained tannic texture. It bursts with beautifully nuanced notes of cranberry juice, boysenberry jam, cherry compote, strawberry preserve, chocolate, vanilla, nutmeg, toast and black tea, all leading toward a lingering finish.
Food and Wine Website
August 2023
Love Champagne? Try These 25 Bottles of American Sparkling Wine
Goldeneye 2019 Brut Rosé
Cranberries and raspberries burst from the glass with each sip of this rosé from Goldeneye, and are framed by taut acid, minerality,and yeasty notes of cobbler shell. Flavors of lemon-lime and green apple ring throughout.
Wine Enthusiast Website
June 2023
The Best Wineries to Visit in Anderson Valley
"I was personally drawn to the rugged beauty of the Anderson Valley, its proximity to the coast and its ability to produce world-class Pinot Noir,” says Goldeneye winemaker Kristen McMahan. Founded in 1996 by Dan and Margaret Duckhorn, Goldeneye has a strong historical reputation for doing just that.
San Francisco Chronicle website
August 2020
Goldeneye: Anderson Valley’s most formal tasting experience
Goldeneye is Anderson Valley’s most formal tasting experience — though then again, this easygoing valley has a low bar for formality. The winery, named for the Goldeneye duck, is part of a group of duck-themed wineries; the company’s most famous property is Duckhorn, in Napa Valley.
Jeb Dunnuck
May 2020
2017 Anderson Valley Pinot noir Gowan Creek Vineyard - 90 Points
Outstanding wines. These wines are outstanding for their type and are worth the extra effort to seeking out. Aside from the straight appellation release, the 2017 Pinot Noir Gowan Creek Vineyard is the largest production release in the lineup from Goldeneye. Its translucent ruby color is followed by classy ripe black cherry and mulberry fruits as well as plenty of loamy earth and spice. Showing some classic Anderson Valley minerality and savoriness, it has a great core of sweet fruit, medium-bodied richness and depth, and a clean finish. It’s impeccably made.
Jeb Dunnuck
May 2020
2017 Goldeneye Ten Degrees Anderson Valley Pinot Noir - 93 Points
Outstanding wines. These wines are outstanding for their type and are worth the extra effort to seek out. The most expensive Pinot Noir in the lineup, the 2017 Pinot Noir Ten Degrees is a cellar selection brought up in 100% new French oak. This medium ruby/ plum-hued 2017 has a ripe, sexy bouquet of black cherry and cassis fruits as well as toasted spice and dried flower notes, medium to full body, a ripe, textured mouthfeel, and the classic minerality and focus that’s present in all of these wines. It has some upfront appeal as well as the more savory style of the 2017 vintage and should evolve gracefully for 10-12 years.
Washington Wine Blog
January 2019
Interview with Katey Larwood, Winemaker at Goldeneye Winery
Firmly at the helm of one of California’s great producers of Pinot Noir, Katey Larwood crafts some outstanding wines for Goldeneye Winery located in Philo, California in the heart of the Anderson Valley.
Forbes
December 2018
California Pinot Noir - A Regional Overview
Very appealing now, this is preferable served with food, and will improve for 5-7 years, though there is a touch too much wood. Otherwise, this is a deeply concentrated Pinot Noir with excellent cool climate character. Outstanding
Wine Spectator
August 2018
2015 Goldeneye Ten Degrees Anderson Valley Pinot Noir - 92 Points
Outstanding; a wine of superior character and style. Aromas of savory herb, underbrush and red berry turn supple and harmonious, with a silky texture and an elegant mouthfeel. Drink now through 2026.
Wine Enthusiast
July 2018
2015 Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Gowan Creek Vineyard - 94 Points
Bright fruit flavors and lavish oak tones burst from the glass. They’re followed by mouthcoating flavors of black cherry, clove and cranberry. For all that richness, it also has good structure due to Brm tannins and lively acidity that give it balance. Enjoy now–2022.
Wine Enthusiast
July 2018
2015 Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir - 91 Points
This is a full-bodied, ripe and mouthfilling wine that oders generous black-plum and blackcherry flavors, a smooth texture and a lingering Bnish. The aroma is nicely spiced in new oak accents that meld well with the black fruits on the palate.
San Francisco magazine
December 19, 2017
Six Sparkling Wines to Add a Spark to Your Holiday Parties
Many people believe that Anderson Valley is the best region in California to grow grapes for sparkling wine. We’re not here to play sides, but the Goldeneye makes a strong case for its home region. You really can’t miss with this honey-kissed sparkler.
Wine Review Online
September 5, 2017
2014 Goldeneye Ten Degrees Anderson Valley Pinot Noir – 98 Points
Looks like I saved the best for last with this year’s stable of Pinot Noirs from Goldeneye. While it’s fun to showcase fruit sources in vineyard designated wines, it’s even more fun from a consumer point of view to witness the artistry of a great winemaker in creating a work from the best lots of the fruit sources available to them. This vintage of Ten Degrees shows Michael Accurso’s skill in a glorious mix of red and black fruit notes, with earth, spice and wildflower accents that shine through structured acidity with a weighty lightness (yes, that’s right) that keeps you engaged as the layers unfold. A truly special wine.
Wine Enthusiast
September 2017
2014 Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir - 93 Points Editors' Choice
Beautifully integrated oak spice and a deep well of fruit flavors combine in this richly complex and layered wine. It’s medium to full in body, supple and mouthfilling in texture, and brings a great array of classic aromas to the table. Dark cherry, forest floor, cedar and a hint of wood smoke meld into a feast of flavor.
Wine Enthusiast
September 2017
2014 Goldeneye Ten Degrees Anderson Valley Pinot Noir - 94 Points Cellar Selection
Rich, but also subtle, this full-bodied wine smells like wood smoke, baking spices, ripe plums and red cherries, then brings mulled cherry and cinnamon flavors on a broad, velvety texture. It offers nuances of oak in the spices, and a confident sense of pure fruit behind it all, giving this bottling a slight edge over the other 2014 Pinots from Goldeneye. It will be best after 2021.
Wine Enthusiast
September 2017
2014 Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Gowan Creek Vineyard - 91 Points
Substantial and smoky, this full-bodied wine has a vivid oak component. Wood smoke and toasted-bread aromas meet ripe black-cherry flavors on the palate, plus clove and cinnamon on the finish. It’s delicious in a bold, rich style.
Wine Review Online
August 29, 2017
2014 Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Confluence Vineyard – 96 Points
Rich damp earth and spice aromas give way to deep black cherry fruit and toasty oak in this vineyard-designate bottling. There’s serious flavor following here, yet it’s lighter in body and livelier in texture than you might expect from such boldly flavored wine. I’d lean toward something on the beefy side as a pairing partner.”
Wine Review Online
August 22, 2017
2014 Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Split Rail Vineyard – 96 Points
One of Goldeneye’s weightier offerings from the vintage, and one that shows bold savory character, with damp earth, mushroom and brown spice enhancing rich black cherry fruit and spice. The rich texture at mid palate belies the acidity that shows in the finish and keeps things on the lithe side of the bigger style. There’s a lot to showcase in the region, and Goldeneye’s portfolio covers a lot of bases.
Wine Review Online
August 22, 2017
2014 Goldeneye Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Gowan Creek Vineyard – 95 Points
Beautifully structured, this layered Pinot Noir is another stunning vintage from the Gowan Creek Vineyard, one of Goldeneye's finest. It shows notes of black cherry and wood spice.
San Francisco Chronicle
August 9, 2017
Uncork a perfect weekend in Anderson Valley
A seated wine tasting at Goldeneye will run about $15 per person. That allows you to taste wines from the warmest eastern parts and coolest coastal parts of the valley side by side. It’s a genuinely informative experience because the transverse valley is about 10 degrees cooler at the coastal end than it is farther inland.