Brewer-Clifton Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir 2017
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Product Details
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Aromas of pomegranate, white tea and raspberry. Flavors of dried fig, white truffle and ripe cherry. Texture is savory.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
There's a purity of fruit and herb to Greg Brewer's style that shines through even on this appellation blend. Aromas of candied raspberry and strawberry pair with damp sage, pine oil and green peppercorn on the nose. The pristine palate's crisp pomegranate and fresh raspberry flavors are instantly cut by eucalyptus and green tobacco leaf. Editors’ Choice
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Wine Spectator
Zesty and well-sculpted, with forest floor notes to the dried fruit and spice flavors. Dried orange peel and clove accents show on the supple finish, revealing hints of tar and paprika. Drink now through 2023.
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Jeb Dunnuck
There are roughly 3,000 to 4,000 cases of the 2017 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills, which offers a beautiful bouquet of baked cherry tart, exotic orange rind, Asian spices, salty minerality, and forest floor. Elegant, medium-bodied, and silky on the palate, it has fine tannins and a great finish. Drink this classic Sta. Rita Hills over the coming decade.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale to medium ruby, the 2017 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills has a high-toned nose of cranberry, red cherry, licorice, woodsmoke, perfumed earth, black cherries and dried flowers with amaro hints. Light to medium-bodied with perfumed fruits, soft, grainy tannins and seamless acidity, it finishes on an earthy note. 2,500 cases produced.
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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.
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.