Winemaker Notes
From the upper plantings at the La Rinconada Vineyard, neighboring the famous Sanford & Benedict Vineyard, consisting of deep, dark, rocky soils. This is a selection of Mt. Eden cuttings that Richard Sanford brought down from Northern California years ago.
In the cellar, two thirds whole cluster is retained and fermented with a combination of foulage and pigeage before being put to 228L barriques, with thirty percent new barrels, for 19 months before bottling.
Professional Ratings
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Vinous
The 2020 Pinot Noir La Rinconada Vineyard is a potent, searing wine. Bright red-toned fruit, minerals, crushed rocks, white pepper and iron all race across the palate. I find the stems overpowering to the degree that site character is masked. This austere, reticent Pinot will need a number of years to come together. It's a very good wine, but one that could have been and should have been better.
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Decanter
Uplifting aromas of ripe forest fruits, dried herbs and a hint of sweet spice. The palate exudes dark fruit with dusty tannins. Combining the generosity of fruit with lovely savoury complexity. Elegant with Pacific freshness on 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.