Winemaker Notes
Although planted in 2007, John Sebastiano Vineyard struggled to develop over the course of its infancy. Since its first vintage in 2010, the team at Foxen has been playing hopscotch in the vineyard, feeling out where they think the best Pinot Noir sites (of 50+ on the property) are right. They finally settled into a few blocks on top of the canyon with south/southwest exposure and limestone outcroppings.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
A step up, the 2020 Pinot Noir John Sebastiano Vineyard comes from a site on the eastern side of the Sta. Rita Hills. It has a smoky nose of ripe red and black fruits, spring flowers, and underbrush. This carries to a pure, vibrant, focused Pinot Noir with good acidity, silky tannins, and a great finish. It's one of my favorites in the lineup.
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Wine Enthusiast
Snappy black-raspberry and smoldering peat aromas make for a unique and intriguing combination on the nose of this bottling from the eastern side of the appellation. Savory flavors of charred meat and burned teriyaki pair with fresh strawberry sauce on the palate.
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Wine Spectator
Delivers delicious mulberry and raspberry flavors that meld with light bramble, dried anise and red tea notes. The finish sparkles with underlying energy, as the fruit lingers. Drink now through 2027. 621 cases made.
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.