Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
As with all the Pinot Noirs from this talented winemaker, the 2023 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills was not destemmed and was aged all in 100% neutral oak barrels. Medium ruby-hued, darker berries and redcurrants intermixed with rose, damp forest floor, and subtle spicy, meaty nuances all emerge from the glass. It's remarkably pure and medium-bodied, with a pure, seamless, layered mouthfeel and ultra-fine tannins. This is classic Greg Brewer brilliance with Pinot Noir.
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James Suckling
The presence of approximately 90% stems is clear on the nose and palate, the resulting grip making for an impressively structured appellation cuvee. Yet the fruit is juicy with cherries, cherry pits, tealike tannins and aromatic woodsy spices with rose hips and juniper, all singing through the midpalate and finish.
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Vinous
The 2023 Pinot Noir (Sta. Rita Hills) is open-knit, fleshy and approachable. Vibrant acids and tingly floral notes lift a wine of purity, regional identity and palpable energy. This really captures the essence of the Sta. Rita Hills. Salted cranberry, crushed rocks, rosewater and orange peel meld together in utter harmony. You'd be hard pressed to find a more terroir-driven entry-level Pinot Noir in Santa Barbara.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
As with the Chardonnay iteration, the 2023 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills encapsulates the region, house and vintage with admirable precision and crystal clarity. Red-fruited, herbal and crushed stone aromas introduce a lifted yet saturated palate, concluding with a similarly vibrant and pleasantly savory finish that lingers with marine nuances.
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Wine Spectator
A savory-edged version, with bitter cherry and raspberry coulis notes at the core and a flash of bracing oyster shell minerality through the finish. Drink now through 2028. 8,475 cases made.
Thin-skinned, finicky and temperamental, Pinot Noir is also one of the most rewarding grapes to grow and remains a labor of love for some of the greatest vignerons in Burgundy. Fairly adaptable but highly reflective of the environment in which it is grown, Pinot Noir prefers a cool climate and requires low yields to achieve high quality. Outside of France, outstanding examples come from in Oregon, California and throughout specific locations in wine-producing world. Somm Secret—André Tchelistcheff, California’s most influential post-Prohibition winemaker decidedly stayed away from the grape, claiming “God made Cabernet. The Devil made Pinot Noir.”
A superior source of California Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, Sta. Rita Hills is the coolest, westernmost sub-region of the larger Santa Ynez Valley appellation within Santa Barbara County. This relatively new AVA is unquestionably one to keep an eye on.
The climate of Sta. Rita Hills is a natural match for Chardonnay and Pinot noir, thanks to the crisp ocean breezes and well-drained, limestone-rich calcareous soil. Here, grapes ripen just enough, while retaining brisk acidity and harmonious balance.