Winemaker Notes
Opulent fragrance of dark cherry, red plum and lavender. Seamlessly integrated tannins, with impeccable balance and brightness.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Lastly, the 2017 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard comes from the southern end of the appellation. Its vivid ruby/plum color is followed by a stunning Pinot Noir that has everything you could want from this region. Ripe black cherries, mulberries, crushed flowers, spice, and assorted earthy notes all define the bouquet, and it's medium to full-bodied, with a seamless texture, flawless balance, and a rocking finish. Enjoy this gem of a wine any time over the coming decade or more.
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Wine Enthusiast
Clean and elegant aromas of black-raspberry sorbet are enhanced by light dashes of cardamom on the intense and dark nose of this single-vineyard expression. The palate is immensely complex and pleasurable, offering cranberry, orange-rind, jasmine and carnation flavors.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Aged in 46% new French oak for 19 months, the medium ruby colored 2017 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard opens with a touch of alcoholic heat and balsamic, very slowly giving up fresh strawberries, raspberries, crushed stone and pomegranate with notions of tree bark and spices. Medium-bodied, silky and with youthfully energetic red fruits, it has a soft frame and lip-smacking acidity, finishing long and still coiled. Give this another 2-3 years in bottle at least. Rating: 92+
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Wine & Spirits
With scents of mulled berries, plums and graphite, this wine has a confident richness, with grape-skin tannins contributing to the formidable structure.
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.”
Perhaps the most highly regarded appellation within Monterey County, Santa Lucia Highlands AVA benefits from a combination of warm morning sunshine and brisk afternoon breezes, allowing grapes to ripen slowly and fully. The result is concentrated, flavorful wines that retain their natural acidity. Wineries here do not shy away from innovation, and place a high priority on sustainable viticultural practices.
The climatic conditions here are perfectly suited to the production of ripe, rich Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. These Burgundian varieties dominate an overwhelming percentage of plantings, though growers have also found success with Syrah, Riesling and Pinot Gris.