2014 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

The 2014 Wait Cellars Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir is made from a very small lot of hand-picked and hand-sorted fruit from the Screeching Owl Vineyard in North Petaluma, California. This tiny (< 3 acres) vineyard sits within the boundaries of the proposed Petaluma Gap AVA, within the larger Sonoma Coast AVA, and is planted to Dijon and Pommard clones.

This area is near and dear to our hearts.  The so-called Trollbridge Oak on our land nearby is pictured on the label.  Like the grapes in the bottle, this majestic coastal oak was shaped by the daily wind and fog rushing in through the gap from the Pacific Ocean 20 miles west.

2014 was a warm, dry growing year, and an early harvest.  Large diurnal swings in temperature and light focused the acids, and by Labor Day we felt the flavors were ready.  We fermented 20% of the fruit as whole clusters, and fermentation was conducted solely by wild, resident yeasts. We pressed into one new and two old, well-used European oak barrels, stirred the wine sur lie through the winter, and bottled the following summer without fining or filtration.

The result is an honest, satisfying expression of the land, as vibrant and nuanced as the marine layers that shaped it.

Production: 75 cases
Release: Summer 2016
Varietal: Pinot Noir Dijon 115
Soil: Steinbeck loam
Crush: Hand harvest, hand sort, 20% stems; 5 day cold maceration
Ferment: Warm, closed top, native “wild” ferment
Elevage: 10 months sur lie, 30% new European oak; battonage through winter
ABV: 13.5%
Aromas: Dark cherry, rhubarb, forest floor
Palate: Firm acids, medium bodied

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