Winemaker Notes
The 2020 Freestone-Occidental wine shares the same winemaking techniques as Occidental's vineyard designated Pinot Noirs. Crystalline, bright, mouthwatering, and a bit salty with a saline mineral finish, the 2020 Freestone-Occidental evokes juicy red berries and a near perfect balance of finesse and energy – of bright, primary red fruits and saline elements. It conveys outstanding precision and lift in the mouth and finishes vibrant and long with beautifully sculpted tannins. Its modest alcohol (13.3%) makes this wine a perfect complement to any meal. It is delicious now and will develop nicely in bottle.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2020 Pinot Noir Freestone-Occidental is highly aromatic and has a perfume of incense, all spice, and ripe red cherry fruit. The palate medium-bodied and inviting, with tangy cherry, dried black raspberry, and savory umami herbs.
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Wine Spectator
Offers lots of energy, with a burst of plum and blackberry fruit backed by bouncy anise and bramble accents, all carried by fresh, lively acidity. Light savory details add range on the finish, as the fruit takes an encore. A bit showy in style, but most folks won't complain about that. Drink now
The Sonoma Coast AVA is large in area but, not counting overlapping regions like Russian River Valley, only has a few thousand acres of grapevines—and it’s no wonder. Much of the region is rugged and not easily accessible. Its proximity to the Pacific Ocean’s fog and cool breezes limits the varieties that can be cultivated, but it proves to be an ideal environment for high quality Pinot Noir.
Since fog is a frequent fact of life here, as are heavy marine layers that sometimes bring rain, the best vineyards are wisely planted above the fog line, on picturesque ridges that capture enough sun to provide even ripening. That, with the overnight drop in temperature that reliably preserves acidity, results in fine expressions of Pinot Noir that often receive tremendous critic and consumer praise alike, and are often in high demand.