Winemaker Notes
The 2022 Double L Pinot Noir is rich yet energetic. Aromas of pomegranate, cloves, and dried herbs are supported on the palate by hibiscus, dark cherry, and baking spices. This wine features a medium body with elegant tannins — an exquisite match for duck confit or prime rib.
Professional Ratings
-
Decanter
This is the Double L estate with five clones of Pinot Noir from the warmer 2022 vintage. On the nose, a dark tone of crushed stone and earth with wild savoury herbals, and dark bramble fruits. There's an elegance across the palate, forest floor, chaparral, a note of savagery that accents the dark berries and mineral freshness, all coming together wonderfully.
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.”
Perhaps the most highly regarded appellation within Monterey County, Santa Lucia Highlands AVA benefits from a combination of warm morning sunshine and brisk afternoon breezes, allowing grapes to ripen slowly and fully. The result is concentrated, flavorful wines that retain their natural acidity. Wineries here do not shy away from innovation, and place a high priority on sustainable viticultural practices.
The climatic conditions here are perfectly suited to the production of ripe, rich Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. These Burgundian varieties dominate an overwhelming percentage of plantings, though growers have also found success with Syrah, Riesling and Pinot Gris.