Winemaker Notes
This 100% Pinot Noir cuvée reflects the cool and windy microclimate of the Sonoma Coast AVA. This climate and terroir provide the ideal conditions for low yields and allow Pinot Noir grapes to mature slowly. Increased time on the vine retains the fruit's natural acidity, with bright flavors of red cherries, raspberries, and spice. They ensure the elegant expression in this Pinot Noir by aging in large neutral oak casks, stainless steel, and older French oak barrels to keep new oak flavors to a minimum.
Lively acidity on the finish makes it an ideal accompaniment to grilled fish and fowl or barbecued meats.
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
Red cherry and shaved cocoa are heady scents. The flavors of tobacco, cinnamon, pomegranate pith, and sandalwood form a charming parade. This is a juicy red, with unearthed raspberries and a spiced cedar finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
This moody, dusky, flavorful wine offers rich black tea, forest duff and black-cherry notes on a full body framed by light tannins. Complexity without noticeable oak, length and a supple mouthfeel make it especially enjoyable.
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James Suckling
An attractive nose of red cherry, sliced strawberry and hibiscus. Medium-bodied with gentle tannins. The palate has more wet mineral and wild berry notes than the nose lets on, giving it more width and depth through the juicy finish.
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: The 2021 Schug Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir is balanced and lively on the palate. TASTING NOTES: This wine offers aromas and flavors of tart red fruits, a hint of spearmint, and a touch of dried earth. Pair it with grilled lamb chops. (Tasted: July 18, 2022, San Francisco, CA)
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.
The Sonoma Coast AVA is large in area but, not counting overlapping regions like Russian River Valley, only has a few thousand acres of grapevines—and it’s no wonder. Much of the region is rugged and not easily accessible. Its proximity to the Pacific Ocean’s fog and cool breezes limits the varieties that can be cultivated, but it proves to be an ideal environment for high quality Pinot Noir.
Since fog is a frequent fact of life here, as are heavy marine layers that sometimes bring rain, the best vineyards are wisely planted above the fog line, on picturesque ridges that capture enough sun to provide even ripening. That, with the overnight drop in temperature that reliably preserves acidity, results in fine expressions of Pinot Noir that often receive tremendous critic and consumer praise alike, and are often in high demand.