Winemaker Notes
Aromas of wild sage, strawberry and cherry, violets, forest floor and pitch. In the mouth, a wave of tart red cherries, black raspberries, and plum with sarsaparilla and Earl Grey on the lengthy finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Smashed raspberry aromas are blasted with pleasantly funky touches of red miso, dried mushroom, toasted sage and other brittle herbs on the nose of this bottling. It presents creamy on the palate at first before light tannins set up the fresh flavors of raspberry and pomegranate, decorated in rose hips and light charcuterie touches.
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.