Critic tasting note: (2020 vintage) "Rodney Strong is closing in on 65 years of wine growing after Sonoma County pioneer Rod Strong got it all going in 1959, with the Klein family taking over the reins in 1989. The RS heritage River East Vineyard, planted in 1968 over alluvial clay-loam soils adjacent to the winery in Healdsburg, remains a core contributor to the estate vineyard bottling. In 2020, Sonoma County growing conditions were optimal, and the harvest was early. What I like about this wine is how it presents dry. It is only 13.5%, and while it spends 18 months in French oak barrels, only 29% were new, and you do not notice the oak. On the nose, plums, baked cherries, and baking spices lead. The palate is intense but dry with solid notes of earthy black cherry dusted in mushrooms, and perfectly toasted oak. A reliable New World pinot that pairs well with almost any pork dish or a simple mushroom and cheese pizza. It's good value, too. (Anthony Gismondi)." - 89/100, Gismondi on Wine