Winemaker Notes
Cherry and floral notes open to stunning red and black fruit with hints of pluot, black currant, and baking spices. Deeply dark and alluring with elongated fine-grained tannins. Tantalizing violet notes deliver an extraordinarily long and worthwhile finish.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A solid core of luscious fruit with blue fruits, graphite and lavender. So floral. Medium to full body. Very fine tannins that are polished and extremely long. Grows on the palate. So drinkable now.
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Wine Enthusiast
The nose on this single-vineyard expression from a higher elevation vineyard in the middle of the appellation is dark, ripe, elegant and serious, showing strawberry, raspberry jam and violet aromas with a hint of cocoa. Powdery tannins frame the ripe flavors of black cherry, cola and freshly smashed currant on the palate. —
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Wine Spectator
Very alluring, with damson plum, griotte and mulberry fruit seamlessly layered with black tea, sous-bois and sandalwood. The long, refined finish lets all the perfume linger prettily. Drink now through 2029.
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.