Nose
Jammy raspberry and plum aromas accented by tobacco leaf, sandalwood and cocoa powder.
Palate
Sleek, flashy textures flood the mouth with flavors of cherry, cassis, blackberry and cola. The finish is velvety and impeccably weighted, with lingering hints of mint leaf and red fruits.
Growing Conditions
The 2021 growing season saw normal weather patterns into early spring. Periodic heat spells in summer and fall were buffered by prevailing mild weather. The harvest came slightly later than normal, and our patience was rewarded with beautiful mature fruit and inherently balanced wines.
Harvest
We source our Pinot Noir from some of the best-known vineyards in Santa Barbara County. The soils here are rich with ancient seabed deposits and sandy loam. Because the county lies near the Pacific Ocean, heavy maritime influences provide cool nights, persistent fog and warm days to create soft tannins with ample color and richness. Pinot Noir grown here thrives amid the long growing season fostered by these conditions. This additional time on the vine allows the grapes to achieve balanced ripeness.
Winemaking
The clusters were hand sorted in the vineyard to ensure the highest quality and integrity. The individual lots were destemmed and fermented separately in open-top stainless steel tanks for a period of 20 days, with daily pumpovers for a balanced extraction of color, flavor and tannin. Each lot was tasted and analyzed for phenolic composition to determine the length of extended maceration.
Aging
The lots were aged separately for 12 months in French oak barrels (77% twice used and 23% neutral). After final blending, the wine was racked to 100 percent new French oak barrels for an additional three months of maturation and integration before bottling.
