Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2012s have drunk well for a handful of years now, and the 2012 Pinot Noir Machado is no exception. Perfumed notes of caramelized cherries, dried flowers, coffee, and smoked earth notes flow to a medium to full-bodied, silky, beautifully balanced Pinot Noir that’s firing on all cylinders today.
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Wine Spectator
Rich and ripe, this combines firm, dense red and dark berry fruit with pretty floral and spicy notes that gain depth, hold focus and offer persistence on the finish. Drink now through 2024.
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.