Winemaker Notes
This juicy, rich, and fruit forward clone is known for making a great stand-alone wine, and grows particularly well at Regan Vineyards. The color is a beautiful deep ruby. The wine opens with aromas of toasted vanilla bean and baked cherry pie. The palate is lively with ripe cherry, strawberry, and raspberry flavors. The wine is medium in body with rich tannins, and a refreshingly clean acidity that contributes to a lengthy mouth-watering finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Plump aromas of Bing cherry meet with lovely scents of toasted sage and turned soil on the dynamic while exuberant nose of this clonal bottling. The palate's bright and fresh red fruit flavors are layered in hickory and sandalwood, making for a lovely combination.
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 rugged and topographically diverse cool-climate appellation with a rich history, the Santa Cruz Mountains AVA stretches from Half Moon Bay, just south of San Francisco, to the northern border of Monterey County. Elevations range from 800 feet to upwards of 3,000 and microclimates vary substantially depending on which side of the mountains the vineyards lie; cool ocean winds and fog play an important role here. This can be a challenging region in which to grow grapes, but it is well worth the effort. Santa Cruz Mountains wines are noted for balanced acidity levels, often showing great aging potential. Wine has been made here since the 1800s, most notably from the legendary Ridge Vineyards, whose Monte Bello vineyard garners international admiration.
Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon are the stars of this region, while Merlot and Zinfandel also perform quite well. Organic and sustainable vineyard practices are becoming increasingly common.