Byron John Sebastiano Vineyard Pinot Noir 2015
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Jeb
Dunnuck
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2015 Pinot Noir John Sebastiano Vineyard has a slightly earthy undercurrent, with plenty of dark fruits, damp soil, forest floor and mossy notes emerging from the glass. It's medium-bodied, juicy and lively on the palate, with enough acidity to warrant a year or two of bottle age. It certainly has beautiful purity of fruit and I suspect will drink nicely for over a decade.
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2014-
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Enthusiast -
Jeb
Dunnuck -
Robert
Parker
Byron was founded in 1984 by winemaker Ken Brown. With years of experience as a winemaker in Santa Barbara County, Ken recognized the Santa Maria Valley's potential for great wines in the Burgundian style, and was the first winemaker to introduce Rhone-style grape varieties to the area. The first crush at Byron Vineyard & Winery produced 7,600 cases, and Byron soon gained national recognition for high quality Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
In 1990, the Robert Mondavi family purchased Byron, and Ken Brown became Winemaker and General Manager. He and Tim Mondavi, Robert's son, set about designing the new Byron Winery as an expression of their shared belief in natural farming, experimental viticulture and gentle grape handling. They wanted to eliminate pumping, which shears grape stems, skin and seeds, allows tannins and other harsh elements into the juice and can make wine bitter.
With the aid of noted architect R. Scott Johnson, who designed the Opus One winery in Napa Valley and San Francisco's Transamerica building, Ken designed a multi-level winery that replaces pumping with gravity flow, resulting in more complex, dynamic wines. Byron's vineyards were also expanded and replanted as Ken Brown experimented with trellising systems, new rootstocks and clones, row orientation, and planting density in his quest for the perfect grape.