Foley Estate Winery Rancho Santa Rosa Pinot Noir 2018
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Deep, dark and concentrated, the 2018 Rancho Santa Rosa Pinot Noir features generous aromas of raspberry, blackberry, pomegranate, and sweet toasty oak. The palate is layered, lush and juicy with bright acidity, plenty of fruit and soft tannins.
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Impressive amounts of game and wet soil flash across the nose on this bottling at first, before the pepper, plum and pomegranate elements fill in. The palate is equally complex, showing more game and soil as well as thyme, peppercorns, rich strawberry and tart cranberry on the finish.
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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.