Winemaker Notes
Upon opening the 2017 La Cote Pinot Noir, the nose yields sour cherry, black tea, sous bois, and citrus rind, all dancing in the glass and on a highly intricate palate. The finish is uniquely long and contemplative.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
There's a fascinating density of violet, crystallized boysenberry, roasted lamb and char siu pork on the nose of this bottling by superstar sommelier Rajat Parr and winemaker Sashi Moorman. The palate hits with a wet gravel minerality before evolving into roasted red fruits, interspersed with blasts of acid and slender refined tannins.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2017 Pinot Noir La Côte is the eponymous vineyard for Domaine de la Côte, planted in an amphitheater with a southeastern exposure. Pale to medium ruby in color, it has a lovely nose of black pepper, dried violet, orange peel, dusty earth and potpourri with raspberry and strawberry preserves, blueberry hints, black raspberries, wild blackberries and notes of gravel dust—very elegant and very perfumed. The palate is light to medium-bodied with juicy berry flavors in the mouth, very fine, grainy tannins and juicy freshness, finishing long and perfumed.
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.