Winemaker Notes
Many are hailing the 2018 vintage as a return to “normal” as the vintage was comparatively calm, cool, and late. The year began with a relatively warm February before giving way to a cold spring and moderate growing conditions throughout the season. The moderate temperatures continued into harvest allowing for full phenolic ripeness to develop and the luxury of picking the grapes when they were mature rather than trying to beat the heat.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2018 Pinot Noir Terra De Promissio comes from a Sonoma Coast site and was all destemmed and aged 10 months in 25-40% new French oak. A Gevrey-like nose of mulled red and black plums, Asian spices, scorched earth, and earthy forest floor give way to a rich, medium to full-bodied Pinot Noir that has terrific balance, plenty of acidity and tannins, and a great finish. It has lots of upfront fruit yet has a firm underbelly and excellent structure. It’s going to benefit from 2-3 years of bottle age, and my money is on it evolving for 10-15 years.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2018 Pinot Noir Terra de Promissio Vineyard has a medium ruby-purple color and opens with aromas of tar before segueing to aniseed, amaro, tea leaves and blackberries. The medium-bodied palate is broody and earthy with a firm, juicy frame and spicy finish.
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.