Winemaker Notes
This Petaluma Gap-designated wine comes from the southern part of the region, near San Pablo Bay. The wind gap in the coastal mountain range funnels cooling breezes and fog from the Pacific Ocean, resulting in an extended hang time that produces well-balanced, elegant wines of character and distinction. This wine has pure aromas of ripe red cherries, raspberries, black tea, and hints of floral notes. It has delicate flavors of strawberry and cranberry, with a juicy and crisp texture and a light mineral edge.
This wine pairs nicely with lamb, duck, and grilled fish.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
An appealing, layered and well-balanced red that offers dazzling aromas of raspberries backed by dark cherries and minerals. It is full-bodied and well balanced, showing fresh acidity and medium tannins that shape and soothe the vivid fruit flavors. Drink now or hold.
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Tasting Panel
Wild strawberries and black strap molasses display an inner core of concentration. Spiced rose petals and cedar are framed by just-ripened cherry with a hint of cherry skin tannins. The acidity stays lively from start to finish.
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Wine Spectator
Stylish raspberry and cherry fruit shows a gently mulled edge, with touches of potpourri and sandalwood lining the finish.
Schug Winery was founded in 1980 with unwavering dedication to Pinot Noir excellence—a specialization that spans 45 years and sets them apart from generalist wineries. Walter Schug, the legendary winemaker who created Joseph Phelps' iconic Insignia, established his legacy in Carneros, where low-intervention Old World winemaking meets California terroir.
Today, 5th-generation German winemaker Johannes Scheid continues this authentic heritage with wines that consistently score 90+ points across their entire portfolio. Johannes trained at Walter's alma mater in Germany, bringing multi-generational European winemaking expertise to their sustainable California practices.
What makes Schug exceptional is their genuine commitment to specialization and authenticity. While others spread their focus across multiple varietals, they've perfected their craft with nearly half a century devoted to exceptional Pinot Noir. This deep expertise, combined with their European winemaking tradition and compelling value proposition, has driven their national expansion and established Schug as a trusted name among wine enthusiasts who appreciate both heritage and quality.
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 vast appellation covering Sonoma County’s Pacific coastline, the Sonoma Coast AVA runs all the way from the Mendocino County border, south to the San Pablo Bay. The region can actually be divided into two sections—the actual coastal vineyards, marked by marine soils, cool temperatures and saline ocean breezes—and the warmer, drier vineyards further inland, which are still heavily influenced by the Pacific but not quite with same intensity.
Contained within the appellation are the much smaller Fort Ross-Seaview and Petaluma Gap AVAs.
The Sonoma Coast is highly regarded for elegant Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and, increasingly, cool-climate Syrah. The wines have high acidity, moderate alcohol, firm tannin, and balanced ripeness.