Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Full of brambleberries, bruised cherries and rose hips with rich aromas and flavors of scorched earth, black licorice and allspice. Substantial yet lively, especially through the finish. Long, supple and structural tannins elongate, promising over a decade of easy aging.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Based on 100% Pinot Noir that was not destemmed and was aged 15 months in 100% neutral oak barrels, the 2023 Pinot Noir Machado offers Bing cherries, red plums, candied violets, peppery herbs, and incense. It's medium to full-bodied, has a broad, layered mouthfeel, ripe, velvety tannins, and blockbuster length. It's a big, rich, opulent beauty that does everything right. I doubt it's for the low alcohol crowd (it's 15%), but it's a brilliant, singular Pinot Noir that has so much character.
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Wine Spectator
This brims with succulent blackberry, boysenberry and mulberry fruit flavors that are coiled with energy, while singed mesquite, blood orange zest, black tea and dried anise accents add fuel on the lengthy finish. Rock solid.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The most multifaceted Pinot Noir in the Brewer-Clifton portfolio is the 2023 Pinot Noir Machado, which functions as an amalgam of all its counterparts in the roster. There is an effortlessness on display from front to back, combining floral, earthy, saline and fennel notes with a darker-fruited backdrop and less overt whole-cluster influence. Echoing the Machado Chardonnay, the palate fuses a broad, supple textural power with a palpably tense and vertical rudder that runs through the graceful, high-toned and chalky finish. This is a beautiful expression of the contemporary style at Brewer-Clifton, and it should evolve beautifully into its second decade.
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Vinous
The 2023 Pinot Noir Machado has a beautifully expressive nose but is undeniably coiled up on the palate, a trait that likely bodes very well for the future. This is a very serious wine that's firmly planted in its nascent, primary phase. A well of complexity and structure resides beneath the top layers of clear, bright red berry fruit and savory herbs. Give this a few years for those deeper nuances to emerge, then reap the rewards. The 2023 is hugely promising.
Rating: 95+
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.