Winemaker Notes
Fruit-driven and wrapped in leather and sagebrush, this blend melds elements from all of Roar's vineyards. This approachable Pinot integrates the best of north and south within the Santa Lucia Highlands.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This blend of some of the top vineyards in all of California is always a wise investment. Aromas of red cherry and plum meet with sagebrush on the nose, while the palate brings a creamier cherry flavor alongside toasty baking spice and cookie crumble elements.
Editors' Choice -
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
As with the regional Chardonnay bottling, the 2022 Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands punches well above its weight and offers a more slender, stylistically refreshing expression of Pinot Noir with less of a winemaking imprint. The nose is high-toned and energetic, offering the signature red-fruited profile typical to this lineup. The palate is slender within the context of the house style, with a soft, elegantly saturated finish and a pleasant touch of tannic grip.
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Vinous
Medium in body, fresh and driven, the 2022 Pinot Noir (Santa Lucia Highlands) is pretty forward in its red-fruited profile, but it also possesses a core of stern, rocky minerality. An enticing air of highlands herbs and sweet lavender adds further intrigue. Juicy, sweet raspberry, clove and a kick of toasty French oak sweetness make.
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Wine Spectator
Easygoing in feel, with friendly blood orange and mulled cherry fruit gliding over light savory and red tea notes. The perfumy, sneakily long finish shows a nice minerally twang.
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.