Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Rocking spiced herbs, red and black fruits along with some meaty, exotic notes all emerge from the 2019 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills, a complex, medium to full-bodied Pinot Noir with a round, expansive, seamless texture that's already a joy to drink.
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James Suckling
A tad closed on the nose at first, but as it opens you are greeted with aromas of red and black cherries, wet minerals and pine. Full-bodied with soft, integrated tannins. There is real development on the palate, where the bright fruit turns more savory and earthy. Smoky finish. Drink or hold.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2019 Kosta Browne Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir is superbly balanced from start to finish. TASTING NOTES: This wine exhibits focused aromas and flavors of black fruit, a hint of chalk, and a touch of oak. Pair it with grilled salmon. (Tasted: May 18, 2021, San Francisco, CA)
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.