We craft our Carneros Pinot Noir from multiple, small-berried clones of the variety grown in several outstanding vineyards in the famed Carneros District at the southern tip of Napa Valley. Morning fog and cooling afternoon breezes from nearby San Pablo Bay ensure a long growing season and the slow, even ripening of our Carneros grapes.

Tasting notes

This wine has vivid bright cherry, raspberry and plum aromas, with seductive sweet vanilla notes. Composed mostly of grapes from the famed Pommard and Swan clones, this plush Pinot is fruit-forward, rich, round and mouthfilling, with juicy dark cherry, plum and pomegranate flavors, with zesty tea-leaf spice notes on the long, succulent finish. With superb balance, deep, opulent fruit, supple tannins and bright acidity, this delicious Pinot will drink beautifully for 5-7 years.

Technical notes

Grapes are harvested exclusively from the Anderson Valley estate vineyard where the cool, foggy mornings and warm late afternoons are ideal for ripening Pinot Noir grapes to perfection. The vineyard features six superb French Pinot Noir clones, which yield small-berried grapes with intense, concentrated flavors and ripe, round tannins. Each lot receives a three-day cold soak before fermenting separately in open-top stainless steel tanks with gentle, manual punch-downs. Following a maceration of several weeks with daily assessments of color and tannin development, the wine was transferred to 30% new French oak barrels. In spring, the wine was blended and barrel-aged for another 6-7 months. Total barrel aging is 14 months.

Food pairing

Delicious with seared tuna or swordfish, pork or lighter red meats.