Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Moving to the reds, the 2021 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills comes from Sanford & Benedict and La Rinconada vineyards. Its medium ruby hue is followed by a brilliant nose of spiced raspberries, flowers, underbrush, and peppery herbs.
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Wine Spectator
Lively, with sleek, tangy pomegranate and blood orange notes that add a zippy fervor, while kirsch and linzer torte accents give this a fuller feel as it opens up. Reveals high-pitched floral notes through the mineral-tinged finish. A fresh, pure, brisk-edged style that should age nicely. Drink now through 2030.
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.