Winemaker Notes
The wine has an intense, dark hue with overt black and blue tones in the bouquet. Aromas of black cherry, blueberry, sagebrush and baking spices exude from the glass. These notes stay true on the palate as flavors of blackberry, forest floor, cherry pit and
oak carry through. Replete with acidity, the tannins are firm with an expansive attack that will allow this wine to age in the cellar.
Blend: 100% Pinot Noir
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
An open and rather soft pinot, offering strawberry and cherry aromas with some stems. Cranberry, too. It’s medium-to full-bodied with a round, creamy texture and a juicy finish. Sheers off at the finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
Bright and fresh aromas of pomegranate and zesty raspberry are warmed up by star anise and nutmeg on the nose of this bottling. There are ripe red-fruit flavors on the palate yet there is a persistently energetic and bright acidity that slices through, and the pinch of white pepper adds complexity.
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Wine & Spirits
From two low-yielding Caleraclone blocks, this wine’s lush raspberry fruit has a briary scent and beetroot depth, succulent and mouthfilling. It’s piercing and assertive in its flavors, with a concentration and radial intensity that makes it ideal for cellaring.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale ruby-purple, the 2018 Pinot Noir Terraces has a nose of blueberries and earth with touches of dried herbs, pepper and citrus. The palate is medium-bodied and firm but ripe, with pleasantly broody fruits and a flavorful finish. This has the structure and flesh to age well in bottle.
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.”
Part of the larger Central Coast AVA, the valley was historically an important source of grapes for Almaden Vineyards before it was acquired by Constellation Brands in the 1980s. At 1,100 feet, the San Andreas Fault divides the valley so that one side is granite and sandstone, and the other is granite and limestone. Its position along the San Andreas fault makes the region well suited for excellent Central Coast wine production. Top varietals include Zinfandel, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Riesling, and rose.