Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesThe 2016 Pinot Noir Machado showed beautifully, with the rounded, supple, and opulent style of this great vintage front and center. Loads of candied cherries, raspberries, spice, and floral notes all define the bouquet, and it has no hard edges and wonderful balance. It’s going to continue drinking brilliantly for another decade or more.
The 2016 Pinot Noir Machado is quite tight-knit after its very recent bottling, unwinding in the glass with notions of cherry, strawberry preserve, rose petal, cinnamon and orange rind—seemingly the most floral and high-toned of these 2016s. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, supple and fine-boned, without the power and richness of the Hapgood or 3D, but endowed with lovely energy.
Brewer-Clifton believes the geographic, geologic and climatic uniqueness of the Sta. Rita Hills appellation provides an ideal place to grow chardonnay and pinot noir grapes of intensity, complexity and specificity. This is why Founder and Winemaker Greg Brewer, Wine Enthusiast’s 2020 Winemaker of the Year, has dedicated his life to this region. Within this appellation, each vineyard carries its own imprint. The Brewer-Clifton mission and passion is to present wines that convey the characteristics inherent to each of these sites, with uncompromising quality.
Brewer–Clifton has the utmost respect for nature. They believe when working with a product of nature, it is necessary to maintain an awareness of the elements and phenomena sometimes beyond their understanding and control. As such, any intervention in the natural evolution of the product must be carried out with the utmost attentiveness and care.
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.
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.”