Winemaker Notes
Muddled strawberry, fresh violets, and sweet vanilla bean enliven the bouquet of this beautifully elegant Pinot Noir. The palate opens with notes of strawberry preserves and warm shortbread that are accented by peppery tannins and rich baking spices. The wine finishes with lingering complexity.
Pair with pork tenderloin, roasted vegetables, seared salmon, and grilled chicken.
Fermented whole berry in .75 ton T-Bins. Aged in 33% new French Oak barrels for 11 months.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Notes of dried cherries, strawberry pie, dried flowers and light spices. Medium-bodied and dry with polished texture. Firm and compact with earthy notes at the end.
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 unique appellation placed in between the warm, Sonoma County Alexander Valley and the cooler Mendocino County's Anderson Valley, the Yorkville Highlands’ gravel soils are ideal for Bordeaux varieties and other full-bodied reds.