v.2018 Pinot Noir, COE
Tasting notes
Very dark purple-red. Aromas of cordial cherries, orange peel, cranberry, and tuberose. Ripe raspberry with a savory Earl Grey tea and carob notes. Tannins are firm but full and supple.
This is the flagship bottling of Pinot Noir from our Estate Vineyards in the Edna Valley - just 4.5 miles from the cold Pacific Ocean. Our vines, planted on varied exposures in complex soils provide exceptional raw materials from which we craft wines that are true to our terroir.
In 2018, the character of the vintage was quire tannic overall, to the degree that we expermented with egg white fining of our Estate fruit for the first time. Ultimately, a progressive blending approach helped the wine knit together well, building a rich and supple wine through an additive, rather than subtractive process.
2018 also saw an increased contribution from our younger vines, a part of the first wave of replanting from our Estate Vineyard. We are encouraged by the strength we are seeing in these renewed parcels and how they complement our older vines in telling the story of our place.
| Download Wine Notes |
| Vintage | 2018 |
| Varietal | Pinot Noir |
| Varietal Composition | 100% Pinot Noir |
| Appellation | Edna Valley AVA |
| Vineyard | Center of Effort Estate |
| Harvest Date | 09/11/2018 |
| Acid | 5.9 g/l |
| PH | 3.51 |
| Aging | 19 months elevage |
| Fermentation | Native Yeast, 15% whole cluster |
| Alcohol | 14.10% |
| Volume | 750 ml |
| Cases Produced | 2100, 6 bottle cases |
| Sparkling Wine | No |
94 points - Wine Enthusiast - Aromas of red cherry and kirsch meet with cardamom, mace and wild herbs on the nose of this flagship bottling. Strong spices of cardamom and cola cut into the powerful black-cherry presence on the palate, where lingering tannins and brisk acidity push into the finish.
90 points- Jeb Dunnuck - The 2018 Pinot Noir, which comes all from the cooler Edna Valley, offers a peppery, spicy, light red-fruited style as well as medium-bodied richness and depth on the palate. It shines for its elegance more than power and richness and is beautifully done.
91 points - Connoisseur's Guide - There are sure to be those who might pick the firmer, more tightly structured 2017 version of this wine as their favorite, but, while it and its 2018 counterpart are very good Pinots, we would cast our vote for this, the younger of the two, which we find to be a bit fuller and more polished in texture as well as being a tad deeper and richer. It is generously appointed with loads of juicy, ripe cherry fruit played against integral elements of sweet oak and scattered hints of savory spice, and, even though it is the more open and rounded of the pair at the moment, it is very well balanced and sure to evolve nicely for upwards of a half-dozen years.
