Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
There's a prominent but relatively restrained sense of cherry juice on the nose of this bottling alongside gamy meat, sagebrush and composting rose-petal aromas. The palate is framed by strong energy, which delivers red fruit, sharp red spice and tinges of spearmint and tarragon.
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Jeb Dunnuck
From a beautiful vineyard on the southern side of the Sta. Rita Hills, the 2015 Pinot Noir La Encantada Vineyard reveals a medium ruby color to go with a terrific bouquet of black raspberries, cranberries, spice box, pepper, and earth. It picks up some gamey, exotic notes with time in the glass, is medium-bodied, seamless, and elegant, with a vibrant texture. It’s going to drink nicely for a decade.
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.