Kingston Family Vineyards Alazan Pinot Noir 2008
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2016-
Parker
Robert
The Kingstons settled in Casablanca in the 1920's. One of Gramps's dreams of finding the "Gramps" Kingston motherlode yielded a 7,500 acre ranch with a herd of cattle, but no gold. Rumor has it that there is some gold deep down under "the Farm", but it is apparently so far down that maybe our great-great-grandchildren will hit pay-dirt.
Through the years, generations of Kingstons have been raised in the "casa patronal" on the Farm in Casablanca. Our wine's label is inspired by this old house still standing today.
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 region that has become synonymous with some of the best whites of Chile, the Casablanca Valley is full of dozens of bodegas who either grow fruit here or come from outside to source from local growers for their own white wine programs. The valley runs from east to west, which means that its westernmost vineyards receive the most cooling influence from the reliable afternoon sea breezes. The soils also tend to be heavier in clay in the west, whereas the eastern end of the valley is warmer and its soils are predominantly granitic. Sauvignon blanc thrives here, Chardonnay does well and Pinot noir is not uncommon.