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For a long time, it was thought Pinot Noir had no potential outside France – until California winegrowers began turning their eyes toward Carneros in the late 1960s. With the San Pablo Bay to the south and the Petaluma Gap to the west, Carneros had long been thought to be too foggy and windy for winegrowing until some intrepid folks realized the cool climate plus excellent soils were perfect for cultivating a finicky, early-ripener like Pinot Noir. Saintsbury was one of the first to plant Pinot Noir in Carneros. With vineyards planted to six clones Pinot Noir, their wines achieve great complexity and depth. The 2019 stands out with a lovely perfume of rose petals and earth and a silky texture that will pair well with lamb, duck, and stewed curries.
Andre Tchelistcheff , the great Russian emigre winemaker/prophet, proclaimed that Carneros with its cool climate would one day produce Northern California’s best Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Though a few growers and sparkling wine producers in the 1970s heeded his call and began planting vineyards in the district, it took a few years for a winery to focus on making a true Carneros Chardonnay or Pinot Noir. One of the pioneers in this area was Saintsbury.
Founded in 1981 by Richard Ward and David Graves (who had met in an oenology class at UC Davis) Saintsbury has always aimed to produce distinctive Pinot Noir and Chardonnay exclusively from the cool and windy terroir of Carneros. Starting small, success came quickly, with the winery growing to 35,000 cases within 10 years. Over the years, Saintsbury has focused almost entirely on single vineyard and appellation-designated Pinot Noir and Chardonnay – though recently it has begun to make wine from vineyards in the Anderson Valley and to produce some Carneros Syrah as well. Saintsbury was an early adopter of using varietal clones to improve their wine by, for example, planting a particular vineyard site with the most appropriate clones or by using clonal diversity to achieve more complexity. A few years ago, Saintsbury sold off its Garnet line of high value wines in order to focus on appellation-designated or single vineyard wines. Frenchman Jerome Chery, the winemaker since 2004, is a specialist in these sorts of wines.
| Country | USA |
| Region | California |
| Appellation(s) | Los Carneros |
| Winery | Saintsbury |
| Vintage | 2019 |
| Color | Red |
| Varietal(s) | Pinot Noir |
| Closure | Cork |
| Volume | 750ml |
| Bottle Size | 8.0 x 29.5 |
| Case Size | 35.5 x 27.0 x 30.5 |
| Alcohol | 13.5% |
| Product Code | SA19CPN |
| UPC | 732458950773 |
92 points (2018 vintage) – James Suckling.
Aromas of rose petals, dried cherry, wild strawberries as well as notes of pepper and cinnamon beguile the nose. Intense cherry and strawberry as well as savory notes emerge on the palate - dried herbs and earth – with notes of five spice and cardamom lingering on the finish.
Fermented in stainless steel tanks, the wine was aged for 8 months in French oak (15% new).