Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
I'm the most proud of this wine, Chad Melville says. "This includes all 16 clones, around 130 different lots. It's like an orchestra, using what's left from the single-vineyard blends. To be able to pull aside those other sweet vineyard spots to bottle separately and still have this wine keep kicking ass—I'm becoming a better farmer and learning the land." Medium ruby in color, the 2016 Pinot Noir Estate has a very bright, sunny nose of tangerine peel, ripe red cherries, spiced cranberries and rhubarb with hints of tree bark, dried earth, oolong tea and crushed strawberries plus a white pepper hint. It's light to medium-bodied with a silky texture, intense, juicy earth-accented red fruits, softly grainy tannins and a long finish. 4,877 cases were produced and at this price point, this makes a good value-for-money casual bottle.
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Wine Enthusiast
Focused aromas of black raspberry jam, peppercorns, light eucalyptus and white pepper show on the nose of this bottling. There is a snappy texture to the sip, where black-plum, tart cranberry and orange-peel flavors converge.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Starting with the value-priced 2016 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills, it was 60% destemmed, saw a long 30-day maceration, and was aged all in very old barrels. This medium ruby/plum-hued effort offers complex notes of macerated cherries, dried strawberries, forest floor, spice, and earth. With medium body, a light, elegant texture, ultra-fine tannins, and a great finish, it's a no-brainer purchase to enjoy over the coming 7-8 years (or more).
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Wine & Spirits
Dark and spicy, this has scents of oak and strawberry, the fruit growing lush with air. A briny savor brings the fruit into focus, and sumptuous oak frames the finish.
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.