About The Wine
Our single-vineyard Pinot Noirs feature a highly selective and worthy collection of vineyard-designated wines, bottled individually to showcase the nuanced characteristics of Pinot Noir. 'John Sebastiano Vineyard' sits in the warmer northeast corner of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA which is moderated winds from the nearby Pacific Ocean, limiting its yields yet resulting in concentrated flavors. The site’s 100-acres benefit from a myriad of exposures and marine influences, which together with premium clonal selection and high-density planting, produce exceptionally small clusters and berries. All grapes are hand harvested and immediately destemmed. After 5 days of cold soaking with intermittent punch-downs and pump-overs, we started the fermentation process with a few punch-downs each day. As the fermentation hit its peak activity and highest temperatures, we punched-down up to 4 times each day with additional pump-overs when necessary. As the fermentation finished, so did the actions we performed until completed. Lastly, we drained and pressed the wine into new and once used French oak barrels. Each grape variety was fermented and aged separately in small lots before blended together. This blend was aged for 420 days in a combination of 50% new French oak barrels and 50% neutral French oak barrels. All barrels are fermented separately as individual clones, then blended together prior to bottling.
The AVA
With a total area of 30,720 acres, the Sta. Rita Hills AVA is home to over 59 vineyards, totaling 2,700 hundred acres planted to Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and 18 other cool climate wine grape varieties. The combination of a purely East/West maritime throat, poor marine-based soils, elevated calcium in the soil and the Pacific’s cooling influence through fog, wind and moderating summer heat combine to form one of the world’s best cool-climate viticulture areas for Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
Winemaker Notes
Ripe aromas of cherry compote meet with clove and nutmeg on the nose of this bottling. The mouthfeel is rich and hearty, but the palate also presents snappy flavors of black raspberry, black-plum skin on the finish.
Accolades
91 Points, Wine Enthusiast