Winemaker Notes
Ojai Clima Frío wines replace what they used to call Santa Barbara County cuvees. While that appellation-level name fit their Burgundian inspirations at The Ojai Vineyard, the name didn’t adequately capture what Ojai was doing in the region. Santa Barbara County is a large appellation with intense East-West temperature gradients, even within the Sta. Rita Hills, where some Eastern pockets are better suited to Syrah and Grenache than they are for Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.
Blend: 100% Pinot Noir
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2023 Pinot Noir Clima Frio is another lightly hued, ethereal Pinot Noir from Tolmach that has a great nose of sweet red fruits, rose petals, fresh basil, and baking spices. It's exotic, medium-bodied, has low acidity, and a salty finish. Drink bottles over the coming 7-8 years or so. I wouldn't be surprised to see it keep longer, but there's no need to hold off on this either.
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Vinous
Just bottled, the 2023 Pinot Noir Clima Frío offers up hints of sweet red cherry, pipe tobacco, cedar, mint and dried flowers. This is an especially savory style that reflects the blend of fruit from Presqu’ile (a cool site—all destemmed) and Yellow Fox Trot. If this is the appellation wine, I can't wait to taste the vineyard designates.
Pinot Noir is the second-most planted grape in Santa Barbara County, just behind Chardonnay. It thrives in cooler areas of the region, namely in the of the Sta. Rita Hills, which is part of Santa Barbara’s larger Santa Ynez Valley sub-appellation. Thought for decades to be too cool for viticulture, Sta. Rita Hills began to gain notoriety in the 1970’s, thanks to the pioneering work of Richard Sandford and Michael Benedict, among others.
Santa Barbara Pinot Noir dances across the palate with vivid red fruit and spice. Precision, bright acidity, elegance and fruit-driven silkiness make Santa Barbara Pinot delightfully enjoyable, whether on their own or with a variety of dishes.
GVMOJAI23PNCF_2023 Item# 3168168