Winemaker at Hop Kiln goes for nuances in pinot

<p>Hop Kiln in Healdsburg began as an ode to beer rather than wine.</p><p>But in its current incarnation as a winery, it has a reputation for making tasty pinots like our wine of the week winner HK Generations, 2007 Russian River Valley at $40.</p><p>What makes the wine a standout? Winemaker Chuck Mansfield said it’s the distinctive blocks on the vineyard property from “river flats and benchlands, where the sandy soils are shallow and well-drained, to steep slopes. ... The most subtle nuances in the vineyards stand out in the cellar.”</p><p>Of course these vineyards were once upstaged by hopyards in the region, with hops a major crop along Sonoma County’s Russian River at the turn of the 20th century.</p><p>“I don’t think people realize how important hops were to Sonoma as well as California,” Mansfield said. “It was actually California’s third-largest commodity for a time.”</p><p>But the decline of the hop industry led to the neglect of kilns. Mansfield said it takes passion to restore a historic building “to the beauty of its heyday.”</p><p>Built in 1905, the unusual stone barn is topped with three pyramid towers.</p><p>“What makes the architecture of Hop Kiln special is its revolutionary design, which streamlined the entire hops drying process at that time,” Mansfield said.</p><p>Hop Kiln remains as one of the few landmarks of the era, a rare winery with a hop history. But architecture aside, all eyes are on the wine.</p><p>As for the pinot, Mansfield said, “We strive to highlight the varietal character of the Russian River. We disturb the wine as little as possible. ... I choose barrels that I feel only enhance the aromatics of our wine, never masking or dominating the aroma. ... My job as a winemaker is to steer the wine in the right direction, always allowing it to manifest its own nuances.”</p><p>Staff Writer Peg Melnik can be reached at 521-5310 or peg.melnik@pressdemocrat</p><p>.com.</p>