Tony Lombardi was born into a family of small business owners, and grew up in Sonoma County. His first job in the wine business came in 1998 when he joined the hospitality team at Clos Du Bois Winery, located in Geyserville, California.
From 2001 to 2013, Lombardi held senior leadership positions in marketing, public relations, and sales for such companies as Allied Domecq Wines, Beam Wine Estates, J Vineyards & Winery, Ascentia Wine Estates, and Kosta Browne Winery.
In partnership with his wife Christine, Lombardi founded Lombardi Wines in 2013 with a barrel of Chardonnay and a barrel of Pinot Noir. He describes himself as a storyteller/connector at heart, and loves to tell the unique and interesting personal stories of Sonoma and Napa wineries and winemakers, and connect them and their wines to people across the country. As part of that effort, he was encouraged to take the leap of faith in creating his own label from his former employers Dan Kosta and Michael Browne. They told him, “We did it, so should you!”
Lombardi hired Cabell Coursey in 2015 to be his winemaker and viticulturist/grower relations manager after he had held those jobs for three years at Kosta Browne. Coursey also toils at his own winery, Coursey Graves. Prior to those efforts, he was the winemaker with Andy Smith at Dumol. Well traveled, he has made wines all over the world, including Burgundy, New Zealand, Oregon, and California.
Coursey and Lombardi make small lots of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from vineyards in the Sonoma Coast AVA. However, the winery owns no acreage or vineyards itself. Rather, the Pinot Noir fruit is sourced from growers in the greater Petaluma area, where the Lombardi family has been since 1947, and Lombardi himself has cultivated many close relationships.
The winery is not open to the public and does not have a tasting room. The wines are sold through an allocated mailing list. This limited production is by design, as Lombardi wants the winery to grow “organically.” Newly active members are first offered the Appellation Series and a small allocation of limited production single vineyard designates. Consistent ordering gains members access to a wider selection of wines.
Lombardi Pinot Noir Russian River Valley Sonoma County 2021
The fruit for this wine was sourced from the Laguna Road and Olivet Road vineyards in Sonoma’s Russian River Valley. Fermentation was in French oak, 33% of which was new. 17 months of barrel aging was in Taransaud, Sylvain, Boutes, and Mercurey barrels.
This ruby-colored wine is transparent and light enough to see the stem of the glass when looking down through the bowl. The palate is in excellent balance, with flavors of bright red fruit, especially strawberry, sweet cherry, and raspberry, supported by sneaky acidity and soft tannins. 150 cases were produced. ABV is 14%.
Although Oregon and Washington state are justifiably famous for their Pinot Noirs, Lombardi’s selections prove that with high-quality fruit and a skilled winemaker, Sonoma can do equally well. I first tried Lombardi wines about four years ago, and I’ve been telling people ever since that these are some of the best Pinot Noirs I’ve ever had. They still are. Highly recommended.
https://www.lombardiwines.com/
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