Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
One of the most known vineyards in the Sta. Rita Hills, Fiddlestik Vineyard has shown a propensity for making some of the richest wines from this site. The 2013 Bonaccorsi Fiddlestik exhibits plenty of richness and power, yet this wine stays refined and balanced. The wine's full red and blue fruit flavors pair it well with grilled lamb chops. (Tasted: January 27, 2017, San Francisco, CA)
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Giving up lots of chocolatey dark fruits, baking spices, licorice and dried herbs, the 2013 Pinot Noir Fiddlestix Vineyard is medium plus bodied, supple, gorgeously textured and fine, with impeccable balance. I love its complexity, and it has a Burgundian slant that will appeal to old world Red Burgundy lovers. It should drink nicely for a decade.
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.