Winemaker Notes
A carefully crafted blend of seven different Sta. Rita Hills vineyards, the 2022 Pinot Noir - Sta. Rita Hills exemplifies the cool climate and long growing season that shape the flavor profile of wines from our area. This Pinot noir has aromas of dark red fruit, baking spice and on the palate the wine is structured and focused, while retaining brightness and freshness, with notes of black cherry and a pleasant salinity on the finish.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Fairly extreme aromas of bay leaf, rosemary and eucalyptus enliven the raspberry core on the nose of this bottling. The palate is awash in sansho peppercorn flavors that give a spicy, herbal edge to the tart red plum core.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Moving to the Pinot Noirs, the 2022 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills is from a mix of vineyards (Hillard Bruce, Spear, Lady of Guadalupe, Bentrock, and others) and was aged in 15% new oak. It's an incredibly peppery, stemmy effort with quality red and black fruits, some forest, floral, and herbal background notes, medium-bodied richness, and a pure, layered, elegant mouthfeel. It’s going to benefit from a year or two in bottle and drink nicely through 2032+.
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Vinous
The 2022 Pinot Noir (Sta. Rita Hills) is a very pretty appellation-level wine. Dried herbs, mint, rosewater and orange peel lend lovely savory intensity. This ethereal, nuanced Pinot is a charmer. All the elements are nicely balanced throughout.
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.