WINEMAKER’S NOTE:
Dark ruby in the glass, aromas of dark cherries and raspberry mingle
with nuances of licorice. Soft and velvety, robust with a voluptuous and
full-bodied mouthfeel, the palate unfolds with decadent layers of
intense chocolate-covered dark red cherries, and a delicate hint of wild
sage. A long, lingering finish instills a lasting impression of rich,
concentrated flavors. – Winemaker, James Ewart
VINTAGE REPORT:
The 2018 Monterey growing season had cool and moderate weather return
to Monterey County and made harvest more aligned with a typical coastal
winegrowing timeline. Mild temperatures, overnight fog and afternoon
winds provided extra hang-time desired for great phenolic development
which this region typically enjoys. With no real significant heat
spikes, the grapes were allowed to slowly ripen and create intense fruit
flavors. This was a harvest of excellent quality
VITICULTURE:
About two thirds of the fruit for this Pinot Noir comes from Santa
Lucia Highlands and about one third from our Estate Vineyard in San
Bernabe. The prevailing afternoon winds in the Santa Lucia Highlands
funnel down from the Monterey Bay allow for faster cooling in the early
afternoons – cooler late afternoon and nighttime temperatures result in
beautiful acidity. The San Bernabe Estate sandy soils are free draining,
allowing the vines to develop deep root systems, these rows were
intentionally planted in a unique wind orientation allowing the vines to
thrive and for the grapes to thicken their skins and heighten the
luscious, round textures on the palate. Our San Bernabe grapes
contribute the red fruit and elegance while the Santa Lucia Highlands
fruit offers darker fruit aromas and tannins. The combination allows us
to add layers and complexity to our final blend.
WINEMAKING:
Our veteran winemaker, James Ewart, oversees the team and the
small-lot winery built in the vineyard. Fruit for this wine was picked
vine-by-vine based on ripeness over a five-week window. Most of the
grapes were harvested and processed through our new gentle de-stemmer
and sorter which keeps much of the whole berries intact for preserving
the delicate aromas. Following a hand-sort to remove any remaining
leaves, the grapes were transferred directly into small, stainless steel
open-top fermenters. We then employ the saignée method which refers to
the process of bleeding or pulling juice from a tank of red must that is
just beginning fermentation. The wine is then pumped out of the
fermenting tank and back over the cap to facilitate extraction of color
and flavor - often referred to as délestage. The must remaining in the
tank has a higher proportion of grape skins to juice, resulting in a
richer and more concentrated wine, this process is followed by a
five-day cold soak accompanied by manual punch-downs 3-6 times
throughout the day in order to extract color and tannin from the skins
and to reduce the bitterness that can be imparted by the seeds. After
fermentation, wines were gently pressed into predominantly French oak
barrels to undergo malolactic fermentation yielding greater color
stabilization.
BARREL REGIME:
This wine was aged in predominantly French barrels. Our favorite
cooper is François Frères which adds dark toasty notes and gives the
wine nice length. A portion of these barrels had their heads toasted to
really accentuate those toasty aromas. The wine spent about nine months
in barrels (~33% new) before blending when James tasted each lot and
selected the lots for the final blend.
PAIRING:
Richly flavored and full-bodied, this Pinot Noir does not shy away
from heartier fare. Serve with a dry-rubbed porterhouse steak, roast
duck – the pairings are endless.
- pH: 3.78
- TA: 0.51 g/100ml
- Alcohol: 14.5% by volume