Winemaker Notes
An explosion of red fruit with an understated yet elegant savory quality. Nostalgic notes of cinnamon stick and clove mesmerize. Deeply rich with an earthy core and copious amounts of fruit. Refreshingly light on the palate with well-integrated tannins and unique flair.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Snappy red-cherry aromas meet with tarragon and other fresh garden herbs on the nose of this appellation bottling. The palate is vibrant and fresh with red fruit as well as prominent spices like mace and cinnamon, but that minty tarragon tone is what ups the uniquely delicious quotient.
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Tasting Panel
This elegant and restrained Pinot Noir shows earthy and savory notes of baking spices, mocha, and cinnamon within a juicy, lithe, revelatory texture. A line of salinity wraps around blue- berry, sage, and mulberry on the finish.
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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
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.