Think of Anderson Valley Pinot Noir as a jigsaw puzzle in reverse. Instead of putting the pieces together to form a complete picture, we’re getting the complete picture by cutting it apart into pieces. That’s the way it is with terroir: the more specific you get about individual sites, the more you learn about a whole region.

Anderson Valley has been cutting things into smaller pieces with every vintage since 2000. Before that, local vintners talked about the “deep end” of the valley to the northwest and the “shallow end” to the southeast. Around the turn of the century, a few of the larger individual vineyards, particularly Ferrington Vineyard, began to stand out clearly from the pack. Now we’re beginning to see those larger vineyards broken down into blocks, and smaller vineyards that used to disappear into blends standing out as well.

The idea that different “ends” of the valley differ for winegrowing is okay as far as it goes – but for this observer at least, it doesn’t go very far. The coastline also runs from southeast to northwest in this part of California, so the valley floor runs roughly parallel to it, from 10 to 15 miles inland. This means the distance from the sea and its much-talked-about cooling influence doesn’t vary a great deal from end to end.

To put this in practical terms, you can argue all day about whether Wiley Vineyard or Kiser Vineyard is “the western-most vineyard in Anderson Valley.” As far as I can tell, you’re not arguing about much besides longitude. It’s much more important for terroir discussions to note that Copain Wine Cellars is now making two wines from Kiser instead of one, and that local wineries such as Breggo Cellars are designating Wiley Vineyard for specific varieties.

Furthermore, while the elevation of the valley floor descends to the northwest, the ridge tops are much more even. Thus two ridge-top vineyards at either end will have more in common with each other than either does with the valley floor. This is particularly important lately, because most new planting is at higher elevations.

I recently came upon a ridge-top vineyard pond I had never seen before, nearly 2000 feet above the valley floor, and soon spotted a large cache of end-posts, trellis stakes, and rolls of wire stashed behind a nearby stand of trees. Another 25 acres of high-elevation vineyard soon to come – and you can be sure it won’t be Merlot.

More and more Pinot Noir Than Ever

Given that geography is not necessarily a good guide to Anderson Valley Pinot Noir, it’s most welcome that valley vintners (both resident and nonresident) are increasing the number of total bottlings faster than growers are creating new vineyards. As we get more pieces of the puzzle, we can dig deeper into what “Anderson Valley Pinot Noir” really means on the ground – and on the palate.

This phenomenon results from three trends: an increase in the number of producers looking for Anderson Valley Pinot Noir grapes; an increase in growers seeking and getting vineyard-designate status; and an increase in bottlings by existing vintners. All three trends are driven by the higher scores and higher prices the region now commands.

While a certain well-known wine magazine still can’t seem to find Anderson Valley on a map, artisan wineries can. When Saintsbury joined the growing number of wineries that are dropping the meaningless “Reserve” label on higher-end wines in favor of vineyard-designated wines, it quickly nabbed a contract for fruit from Cerise Vineyard (where Copain has already locked in a prime block for its own vineyard-designate).

The vintners behind such new labels as Baxter, Black Kite Cellars, Harrington and Zina Hyde Cunningham Winery don’t have to live in Anderson Valley to know that serious Pinot Noir grows there. They’ll all be back at the Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival May 18-20, after successful debuts last year. If early indications hold true, the number of individual wines from these and other new programs will increase this year, due to a higher incidence of site- and vineyard-specific bottlings. It will also be fun to see how many (and which) wineries got the privilege of making 2004 and 2005 Pinot Noir from coveted vineyards such as Ferrington and Savoy.

In part because of the demand from new labels, local growers who were once relatively anonymous are flexing their muscles more fully these days. Consider Day Ranch, which is in many ways the prime example of Anderson Valley’s winegrowing past: a consistent producer of a large quantity of good fruit, all of which disappeared into bottlings by established wineries in and out of the valley. No one knew the name of the vineyard unless they drove by and saw the sign, or knew a member of the Oswald family.

Limited Releases are the Rule, Not the Exception

Not anymore. With the recent release of a 2005 Day Ranch Pinot Noir under their new Standish label, the Oswalds are vineyard-designate vintners now. They made only 350 cases of their debut wine, but then again, they own the vineyard. It’s not hard to imagine, as they build their brand, that they can identify specific vineyard blocks that speak with particular clarity to Pinot Noir fans – and put that message in a bottle.

It’s also not hard to imagine enterprising winemakers wanting to buy the fruit from those vineyard blocks for their own labels. The reality is, few wineries want to make 25,000 cases of one wine anymore if they can make five or six wines at 5,000 or less. That’s because they get more chances to catch lightning in a bottle: a big number from one of the 100-point jockeys, placement in a movie, or whatever moves major units these days. They can also spread out releases during the year to ensure a steady stream of news, media samples, and mailing-list business.

The exceptions to this rule in Anderson Valley make great wine and have great marketing machines in place, so they don’t need to get more specific. I’m thinking now of Goldeneye, Migration, and Navarro Vineyards. But the trend in the other direction is just as pronounced. The top out-of-appellation producers, such as Copain and MacPhail , all make multiple Anderson Valley Pinot Noirs now, and in-valley vintners are adding new programs as well. To cite just one example, Raye's Hill bottled five different Pinot Noirs from 2004 – the vintage that primarily will be on display at the Pinot Noir Festival.

It used to be easy to tell how Anderson Valley Pinot Noir was doing, because you needed to sample only a dozen wines. To even begin to understand the region, its sites and its vintages these days, you need to put together a much more interesting and complex puzzle. There’s no better way than to attend the festival and taste the pieces for yourself.