Winemaker Notes
Scents of black cherry, black tea, black raspberry, forest floor, baking spices, cigar box and black plum on the nose. Layers of black cherry, black raspberry and red plum are enhanced by fennel and sage rounded out by vanilla and a touch of mineral for a long lingering finish on the palate. Pairs exceptionally with Roasted Duck, Fillet Mignon or Grilled Portobello Mushrooms.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This elegant bottling is named after the late actor-turned-vintner's daughter, who still runs the company. It features well-integrated aromas of cherry, rhubarb and smoke. That smoke also shows on the palate, where piquant raspberry, dried lavender, thyme, rosemary and allspice sizzle toward a lively finish.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale to medium ruby-purple colored, the 2015 Pinot Noir Ashley's Vineyard has pretty violets and red rose notes over a core of cranberries and pomegranate plus touches of bay leaves and mossy bark. The medium-bodied palate delivers a great intensity of red berry and earthy flavors with a pleasant suggestion of chewiness to the texture and long, lively finish.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Moving to the reds, and always solid, the 2015 Pinot Noir Ashley's comes from the Rancho Las Hermanas vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills and saw a touch of whole clusters and 17 months in just under 50% new French oak. It offers lots of candied red fruits, licorice, smoked earth and sappy herbs notes with medium-bodied richness, good mid-palate concentration and a clean finish.
Established in 1989, Fess Parker Winery is a multi-generational family owned and operated winery that has a rich heritage in Santa Barbara County. Fess Parker produces premium, small-lot, vineyard designated Burgundian varietals from the Sta. Rita Hills and Santa Maria Valley as well as Rhône varietals from their organically farmed, SIP Certified estate vineyard.
Outstanding fruit sources, including some of the finest vineyards in the county, coupled with skilled winemaking, led by Blair Fox, form the foundation for the winery’s success. Now three generations in, the Fess Parker Family is proud to carry on Fess’s legacy of wine heritage and hospitality in Santa Barbara.
Fess Parker Winery was proud to be named a Top 100 Winery in the World by Wine & Spirits Magazine in both 2022 and 2023.
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.