Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2020 Pinot Noir La Rinconada Vineyard has a gorgeous expression this vintage. Medium ruby-purple color, it's scented of raspberry, pomegranate and blueberries with accents of cola, tobacco leaves and potpourri. The medium-bodied palate has a deep core of red fruit and tremendous spicy, earthy accents. Supported by powdery tannins and bright acidity, it boasts loads of floral perfume on the long finish. Wow!. Best After 2022
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James Suckling
Aromatic and floral with roses and hibiscus with fresh strawberries. Some hot stones. Full-bodied. Firm and velvety tannins that melt into the wine. Hints of meat, chocolate and cedar. Some bark, too. Savory with ripe fruit yet flashy and crisp. Contrasty. A top wine.
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.