Winemaker Notes
The 2017 Pisoni Estate Pinot Noir is a breathtaking example of Pisoni Vineyards. Its strikingly dark ruby core acts as a curtain that draws open gracefully with each swirl in the glass. Waves of pure fruit offer notes of plum, crushed strawberries and black cherry and are delicately balanced with complex notes of black sage, violets and su bois, marrying distinct elements that form a whole greater than the sum of its parts. This wine drinks beautifully now, but will continue reaching new heights for those who resist temptation over the next decade or more.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
As to the red, the 2017 Pinot Noir is a great example of this vineyard as well as the vintage. Lots of cassis, smoked earth, flowers, and ground herb notes define the bouquet. Medium to full-bodied, it has beautiful purity and elegance as well as ample mid-palate depth and concentration. California Pinot Noir doesn’t get much better, and this is capable of evolving for over a decade.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Medium ruby-purple in color, the 2017 Pinot Noir Estate has a youthfully shy nose, opening to crushed blueberries, black fruits, perfumed earth, smoke and cola with dried violets and red fruit sparks. Medium-bodied, silky and serious in the mouth, it has tons of energetic fruit and spicy accents, with firm, wonderfully grainy tannins and great freshness on the long, layered, energetic finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
Dense and concentrated on the nose, this iconic bottling shows intense aromas of black cherry, sage, clove and cardamom. The tannins are fairly rigid at this young age, giving structure to the rich fruit and spice tones that are seamlessly integrated.
Cellar Selection
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James Suckling
Blueberry and strawberry with slate and milk-chocolate aromas follow through to a full body with velvety tannins and a tangy, vivid finish. Drink or hold.
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.