Region: Sonoma Coast

Vineyard: Robert's Road

Bottling Date: February 11, 2015

Release: October 1, 2015

Production: 98 cases

Alcohol: 13.14%

Drinking Window: 2016-2022

Winemaking Notes:

The 2013 vintage was nice and even, with no heat spikes until labor day weekend. Seeing that heat, and having the sugars and acids about where we wanted them, we called the pick for labor day. The fruit came in looking gorgeous, with just enough acidity and no signs of stress. This was our fifth vintage working with Robert's Road Vineyard, but the first taking only the Pommard clone. I feel that this clone is ideal for making the kind of earlier picked, more elegant pinot noir that I am striving to produce. Once in the cellar I pretty much let the fruit do its own thing, and the fermentation started with native yeast after about a week. A pumpover a day was enough to keep things going, but toward to end I switched over to punchdowns to break up some of the whole berries that still remained. After two weeks on the skins we pressed off and went to barrel, with a little less than 50% new French oak. The wine then aged in barrel for about 15 months, before being bottled unfined and unfiltered in February, 2015. This was the first year that we felt we had captured the vineyard to the extent that the wine should be vineyard designated, and thus it bears the Sangiacomo name.

Tasting Notes:

The 2013 Pinot Noir is very pale ruby in color, with aromas of cranberry, orange peel, citrus, and a touch of freshly cut lumber. White tea, bay leaf, and ginger flavors are most prominent on the palate, with faint undertones of cherry, blueberry, and raspberry. In our quest to make earthier, more savory wines that are not as dominated by fruit flavors, we think that this one is a huge step in the right direction. The finish leaves a lingering impression of herb and spice, with great acidity suggesting this wine has a long life ahead of it. I would recommend giving this one a few months to settle down, and then a good decant to really open it up.