By focusing solely on Pinot Noir from the most prestigious vineyard sites in California and Oregon, and by vinifying each barrel separately by lot, clone, yeast and cooper, we champion individuality of place and intensity of flavor in each wine we produce.
Production & Technical Data
Alcohol: 14.3%
pH: 3.4
Total Acid: 0.62
100% French Oak/ 55% New: Remond, Saury, Billon,
Francois Freres
Cases: 270
Winemakers' Comments
One of the distinguishing characteristics of the 2004 vintage was the heat spikes that punctuated the month of September. Because many of our vineyards are farmed impeccably they often achieve unusually low yields. Combine low yields and heat spikes and you run the risk of raisined fruit. Because 2004 looked like an earlier ripening year all along , we purposefully chose to leave more crop on the vines at several locations with the hope of slowing down the ripening process and avoiding the difficulties that go along with the aforementioned heat spikes. This truly paid benefits, especially at the Clos Pepe Vineyard . Because of the extra crop, the grapes were able to hang through the heat spell. We were then able to achieve our desired ripeness levels and the fruit came in at textbook numbers with an average sugar of 25 brix and a pH of 3.4. The resulting wine has flavors of cherry Jolly Ranchers, violets, and cigar box. The wine is quite full bodied , but with a strong backbone of acidity. This wine should be an ideal candidate for the cellar.
- Adam & Dianna Lee
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