Melville Sandy's Block Pinot Noir 2019
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Wine
Enthusiast -
Robert
Parker -
Jeb
Dunnuck -
Wine &
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Product Details
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Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Vibrant garnet in color, Sandy’s is aromatically complex, with notes of rhubarb, raspberry bramble, oolong tea, pink pepper, dried basil, five spice, and ocean spray. The palate is supple and broad, with flavors of pomegranate, ripe cranberry, bright Bing cherry, candied tangerine peel and hints of rose potpourri. Held together by finely diffused tannins and a backbone of elegant acidity, the wine finishes with tremendous length and a wave of minerality.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This wine starts with aromas of pine needle and tarragon, with joyous bowlfuls of ripe yet snappy raspberry and cherry chiming in. Herbal elegance shines throughout the sip, giving eucalyptus-like depth to the juicy red-fruit flavors.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Medium ruby, the 2019 Pinot Noir Sandy's Block has pretty scents of blood orange and raspberry jam with wafts of dried flowers, tea leaves and Angostura bitters. The medium-bodied palate is soft and grainy, with juicy acidity that highlights loads of sweet berry fruits. It finishes long and layered.
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Jeb Dunnuck
I always love this cuvée and the 2019 Pinot Noir Sandy's is a standout, offering ample red and black fruits supported by lots of loamy soil, dried flowers, and spice. Incredibly complete, with medium body, a layered, elegant texture, ripe tannins, and fabulous charm. It will keep for a decade.
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Wine & Spirits
Slow to rouse, this ’19 is a study in cluster spice when first poured, showing scents of licorice, bay leaf, bergamot and tea—the fruit tucked in behind. A luminous core of red fruits emerges with a day of air, attractive strawberry and red cherry, sleek, refined, exotic and alluring—and in need of cellar time to emerge more fully.
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Enthusiast
Melville is a family-owned, 100% estate, organic vineyard and winery in the Sta. Rita Hills AVA of Santa Barbara County.
They produce Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Syrah, and a small amount of Grenache. All their wines, from the flagship Estate
Pinot Noir to the Small Lot Collection Donna's Block Syrah, are hand-grown and hand-made 100 cases at a time.
Their founder Ron Melville carefully selected the location of the estate for its proximity to the Pacific Ocean as well as
the soil composition - predominantly sandy loam and diatomaceous earth with sections of clay. You can be too close
to the ocean and struggle with getting fruit ripe, and you can also be further away and struggle with temperatures that
are too hot...Melville is in the sweet spot.
The Melville's have been practicing responsible farming for over three decades, and since 1997 in the Sta. Rita Hills
when brothers Chad and Brent Melville planted the estate vineyards (before the AVA was formally established). They
take great pride in their commitment to "winegrowing"…working in harmony with Mother Nature to nurture their land
through organic and sustainable farming practices to ensure that all of the most crucial work is done in the vineyard.
The Sta. Rita Hills AVA is incredibly unique for a few reasons:
• It lies within a transverse mountain range, meaning that the mountains on either side of the valley are running
east-to-west from the ocean rather than north-to south. This is the only transverse mountain range in North
America.
• It has the longest growing season in North America. The growing season starts early (bud bread in late
February) and ends relatively late (Melville is often harvesting into late November) because they have a mild winter
and a cold, sunny summer. This environment of consistent "cold sunshine" allows for a long, slow ripening
and wines that showcase high acidity with ripe aromas/flavors.
Stylistically, They choose to only use neutral wood. With the vines being 25+ years old, they have reached a maturity
that Melville is proud of. The vines are creating the best fruit ever and they want their customers taste the flavors of Sta.
Rita Hills and Mother Nature in their purest form.
Stem inclusion during fermentation has been a key to Melville wines. They create aromatic lift, add tannins, and can
bring another dimension of flavor to the palate, including savoriness and spiciness. When using stems, it is important
to ensure they are fully ripe to avoid green, unpleasant, vegetal flavors. Fortunately, the Sta. Rita Hills' long growing
season allows for fully ripened stems.
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.