Radio-Coteau
Sebastopol is very close to Pacific, and that is precisely why Radio-Coteau is located there. Eric Sussman's winery takes advantage of the coastal areas with the cool climates of western Sonoma County and Anderson Valley; most of these vineyards are located on slopes with well-drained soil and have no shade to block the sea breezes blowing in from the coast.
The winery's style emphasizes selecting these vineyards rather than making adjustments later in the cellar. Radio-Coteau has been operating as Demeter Certified Biodynamic since 2008, and its headquarters is not just a winery but a working farm that combines forests, orchards, gardens, livestock, and historic buildings surrounding the vineyards.
Pinot Noir is the grape that most people think of first when they think of this winery. Syrah and Zinfandel also play an indispensable role in the winery's history.
A property from 1892, a winery from 2002
Before Prohibition, this property was traded as the Lemorel Winery, and was later operated as Joseph Morelli and Sons; its recorded history dates back to 1892. Eric Sussman purchased this land and established Radio-Coteau in 2002.
Sussman grew up in New York and studied sustainable viticulture at Cornell, majoring in Agricultural Systems and Environmental Sciences. After graduating in 1991, he worked briefly as a winemaker at Staton Hills, located in Washington, before moving to France.
His experiences during his time in France provide a good insight into how Radio-Coteau is currently operated. Sussman spent time at Baron Philippe de Rothschild in Bordeaux, Comte Armand in Pommard, Jacques Prieur in Meursault, and studied at the Lycée Viticole in Beaune. The name Burgundy has certainly taken root.
Back in 1997, during his time in California, he worked at Bonny Doon in Santa Cruz, where annual production reached approximately 100,000 cases. However, that scale was not what he was looking for. He moved to Dehlinger in Sonoma County, resigned from his position as associate winemaker in 2001, and purchased the Sebastopol property the following year.
The vineyards
Radio-Coteau does not require a warm, easy-to-cultivate region. Its vineyards are concentrated in western Sonoma County and Anderson Valley, with a particular preference for benchland plots, sloping areas between hillsides and valley floors. These areas are well-drained and do not tend to trap cold air.
Air and fog blowing in from the coast arrive at these vineyards regularly yet unpredictably. This delays fruit ripening and extends the growing season, allowing the fruit to remain on the vines longer at lower temperatures.
The Sebastopol home is not just a place where grapevines grow. Forests, gardens, orchards, historic farm buildings, and livestock all share this property, a deliberate arrangement rather than mere decoration. In other words, the mixed farm supports the biodynamic system in ways that a monoculture cannot.
The terroir
The two characteristics that define the vineyards operated by Radio-Coteau in the western regions of Sonoma County and Anderson Valley are well-drained soil and proximity to the sea.
Well-drained soil naturally regulates the vines' vigor without the need for artificial intervention by the grower. Cool coastal air and fog play the rest of the role, helping to maintain appropriate acidity while the flavors develop. Grapes grown in this manner tend to arrive at the winery already well-balanced.
This vineyard's philosophy is very clear: since the vines naturally adapt to their surroundings, the focus is on allowing this natural process to unfold rather than artificially intervening.
Three reds, and Pinot leads
Radio-Coteau's wines are directly connected to the grapes it cultivates:
- Pinot Noir: The variety most closely associated with this winery
- Syrah: A wine bottled from grapes harvested from several distinct vineyards
- Zinfandel: Includes grapes produced from the former Lemorel vineyard
For single-vineyard wines, the blending ratios are not disclosed; these are varietal wines named after the vineyards where the grapes were grown.
The winemaking
Radio-Coteau has been Demeter Certified Biodynamic since 2008. Demeter is a certification body for biodynamic agriculture, and this certification pertains to agricultural practices rather than marketing claims.
At the winery, they pursue a minimalist approach. Sussman and his winemaking team describe the goal of this approach as harmonizing what nature provides with a disciplined yet light human touch; in practice, this means crafting wines individually for each vineyard rather than following a set recipe.
The wines are bottled in lots produced by hand from carefully selected vineyards. Small-batch production, single-vineyard wines, and minimal intervention. And all of this is possible, above all, because high-quality grapes are harvested correctly from the very beginning.
The wines
Syrah has been garnering significant attention at Radio-Coteau, and separate wines produced from different vineyards are being released. County Line and Harrison Grade are two such examples, each named after its respective vineyard; the winery has also bottled Syrah under names such as Las Colinas or Dusty Lane.
Zinfandel Lemorel is the wine most deeply associated with this specific site. Lemorel was the winery's name for this land long before Sussman appeared, and the bottled wine continues that tradition.
Pinot Noir remains the wine that most people think of first when they say Radio-Coteau, and in Sonoma and Anderson Valley, it is produced from cool vineyards. Across this entire range, the wines are small-batch, single-vineyard bottlings; therefore, the characteristics of each vintage vary depending on the quality of the fruit produced by the vineyard.
Frequently asked questions
Does Radio-Coteau own its vineyards or buy fruit?
Both. There are estate vineyards at the Sebastopol property, and the winery works closely with a selected group of coastal sites in western Sonoma County and Anderson Valley.
Which grape is Radio-Coteau best known for?
Pinot Noir. It is the variety the winery is most often associated with, though the Syrah bottlings have a strong following of their own.
Is Radio-Coteau only making red wine?
No. The wines that get talked about are reds — Pinot Noir, Syrah from several vineyards, and Zinfandel — but the winery also bottles a Chardonnay (Savoy). The estate is a mixed farm with orchards, gardens and livestock alongside the vines.
