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2017 Pinot Noir
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225 Cases Produced
James Suckling
92
"I'm so proud of this wine. While it's a new-age, terroir-driven Pinot with bags of contemporary style and focus, it has a generous Burgundian heart, brought out by the French Vosges oak barrels we age it in. The perfectly grown, lovingly hand-harvested fruit reveals its quality in every sip." Cristie Kerr
Tasting Notes
Dark and brilliantly red in color, this wine opens with a bouquet of fresh-picked strawberry, wild raspberry, and fresh thyme aromas – all hallmarks of great cool-climate Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir – with deeper notes of star anise and sumptuously soft French oak. Medium-bodied on the palate, it offers beautiful vibrancy, depth, and texture. Flavors of strawberry and cherry mingle with a forest floor complexity, all buoyed on fresh acidity and velvety tannins. The finish is long, focused, and ever-evolving. Drink now through to 2025, ideally served at around 66°F/19°C in a large Burgundy glass.
Blend
100% Pinot Noir from the Manzanita Vineyard
Aged
Barrel-aged 14 months in 100% French Burgundian Oak; 50% new
Alcohol %
14.6
Winemaker
Helen Keplinger
Winemaker Notes
35% whole cluster pressed, bottled unfiltered and unfined.
Harvest Date
Hand-picked fruit, harvested at night in the first week of October 2017
Agro Ad Amphorum
Latin Translation: From Soil to Bottle
The 2017 season began with sustained rainfall throughout January and February, replenishing soil nutrients and resulting in healthy, vigorous vines. Bud break was on time, appearing in mid-March, then the gradual warming summer brought a textbook growing season until July when there followed a period of sustained warmth.
August brought much-needed cooler weather, allowing the grapes to develop complex flavors while maintaining their signature acidity. Late summer was hot and spiked the fruit with deeper flavors and textures, all along retaining the amazing acidity we need to make finely balanced Pinot Noir.
August brought much-needed cooler weather, allowing the grapes to develop complex flavors while maintaining their signature acidity. Late summer was hot and spiked the fruit with deeper flavors and textures, all along retaining the amazing acidity we need to make finely balanced Pinot Noir.
Philosophy
While 2017 was a heartbreaking year due to the fires that raged through Napa Valley and Sonoma County, this wine sings a defiantly cheery song: one of beautifully ripe, perfectly tended grapes (we harvested just days before the fires came to the Sonoma Coast) and passionate, intuitive winemaking.
The Pinot Noir grapes for this wine came from Manzanita Vineyard, lovingly farmed and tended by Ulises Valdez and his team. To do the fruit justice, we made and matured the wine in the finest French oak barrels from the Vosges forest, mixing old and new barrels to get the perfect balance of fresh vibrant fruit and silky layered complexity.
The Pinot Noir grapes for this wine came from Manzanita Vineyard, lovingly farmed and tended by Ulises Valdez and his team. To do the fruit justice, we made and matured the wine in the finest French oak barrels from the Vosges forest, mixing old and new barrels to get the perfect balance of fresh vibrant fruit and silky layered complexity.
