Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Former actor Fess Parker purchased the 289ha Foxen Canyon Ranch in 1988, initially to run cattle with a few acres of vineyard. Eli Parker and his sister Ashley Parker Snider now run the estate, inspired by their late father’s vision. Their Pommard Clone Pinot Noir aims to show a very particular terroir expression, all sourced in their Ashley’s Vineyard Block W. Aged 17 months in 100% French oak, 44% new. Ronan Sayburn MS: Rich, full and ripe, very silky tannins and grippy acidity. Dark cherry and strawberry confiture, bacon and sundried tomato. James Doidge MW: Smoky aromas, roasted meat and mushroom, elegant and earthy, concentrated and savoury, minty and herbal. Sophisticated and nuanced, combining lush fruit with the savoury notes, and a long finish, with elegance and finesse. Sarah Knowles MW: Pure red fruit and fresh, bright and driven style.
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Wine Enthusiast
There are aromas of warm, oaky spice, dark plum and anise on the nose of this bottling, but the seashore-like accents are most intriguing, including nori wrap and charred driftwood. Baked plum and mulberry flavors pair with that smoky wood flavor on the palate
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2018 Fess Parker Pommard Clone Pinot Noir shows the dark fruit side of this grape variety. TASTING NOTES: This wine basks in the glory of dried and savory spices along with a note of licorice and oak in its aromas and flavors. Enjoy it with a beautifully spiced, roast leg of lamb. (Tasted: April 14, 2021, San Francisco, CA)
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Jeb Dunnuck
All from the Ashley's Vineyard in the Sta. Rita Hills, the 2018 Pinot Noir Pommard Clone is another beautiful wine in this lineup. Lots of floral notes as well as raspberries, mulberries, and incense emerge from the glass. Medium to full-bodied, with a core of sweet fruit and a great finish, it's a more forward, sweetly fruited wine in the lineup yet stays pure and beautifully balanced.
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.