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At the upper end of Mendocino’s Anderson Valley, summer days are often cold and foggy. But a climate that disappoints beachgoers delights the Pinot Noir vines growing in the Savoy Vineyard. But the way this vineyard sits below a ridge protects the vines from winds. As a result, Savoy Vineyard Pinots delight with raspberry, plums, and cherry flavors as well as earthy notes of fern, wet moss, and minerals. For the 2023 vintage, a long, cool growing season culminated in the first November harvest of Ted Lemon’s 43-year career. This extended hangtime resulted in a wine defined by concentration and greater tannin structure than previous years. The palate is linear and transparent, layering fresh red cherries with black tea, savory meaty nuances, and a flinty minerality. With an ABV of 13.0%, the wine is elegant yet remarkably powerful.
Ted Lemon is a winegrower, not a winemaker. Winegrowing implies that careful and conscientious farming is the primary step in crafting wines that express their terroir. Littorai was founded in 1993 after Ted and Heidi Lemon took an epic wine tasting tour from Walla Walla, Washington, to Santa Barbara in search of a spot that would yield great Pinot Noir. They became convinced that Northern California coast offered the best potential. Littorai’s wines have since become the benchmark for a new style of California Pinot Noir that strives to be a “wine of place.” These wines are lighter in color and alcohol and less extravagant and ripe, but strikingly fresh, pure, and vibrant – aromatic and flavorful without being weighty or opulent. Burgundy was an early influence on Lemon. He studied enology at the Université de Dijon, apprenticed at several Burgundy houses and was appointed head of Domaine Guy Roulot in Meursault – all by the age of 25! But though Burgundy has been a model for Littorai, it was never a template. Instead, he lets the terroir of his vineyards suggest how best to cultivate them and craft their wines. These vineyards are located along the littoral, the coastal edge of California, on rugged hillsides in the Anderson Valley (Mendocino County) and along the Sonoma Coast. Here ocean fogs bless the vines with an extended growing season, but more importantly, the soils are so diverse (as a result of the area’s turbulent geology) that even nearby vineyards can produce wines of different aroma, flavor and ageability. Littorai focuses on single vineyard Pinot Noir and Chardonnay but also makes two appellation bottlings with those barrels or vineyard lots that do not meet the highest standards. Littorai owns just one estate vineyard (The Pivot, near Sebastopol), but sources the rest via “by the acre” contracts or long term leases that allow Lemon to plant and work the vineyards as he pleases, even if the yields are tiny. A firm believer in biodynamie, the estate operates an integrated farm, with vineyards, pastures, and woodland combined into one holistic unit, but even the non-estate vineyards are farmed organically without any fertilizers beyond vineyard compost. Winemaking involves fermenting the Pinot Noir with some amount of whole clusters in traditional open-top fermenters with natural yeasts and without (or with very little) sulphur or other additives. The wines age in (partially new) French oak for up to 16 months. If rich, mouth-coating, opulent black fruit is what you expect in a California Pinot Noir, Littorai’s wines may provoke a surprise. Prepare for floral and red fruit aromas, vibrant flavors, fresh acidity and a tannic structure that will allow the wines to develop and blossom over the years.
| Country | USA |
| Region | California |
| Appellation(s) | Anderson Valley (Mendocino) |
| Winery | Littorai |
| Vintage | 2023 |
| Color | Red |
| Varietal(s) | Pinot Noir |
| Closure | Cork |
| Volume | 750ml |
| Bottle Size | 8.5 x 29.5 |
| Case Size | 35.0 x 27.0 x 30.5 |
| Alcohol | 13.0% |
| Product Code | LT23SVP |
| UPC | NONE |
97 points – James Suckling.
Aromas of fresh raspberry, red cherry, and alpine strawberry are layered with notes of black tea, forest floor, and flint. The palate reveals intense pomegranate and spice flavors, and fine-grained, persistent tannins and a vibrant acidity provide a long, transparent finish of rose petals and minerals.
Fermented with 34% whole clusters on native yeasts in both stainless steel and wood. The winemaking team utilized four different fermenters, including one that was 100% whole cluster, to enhance the wine's depth. The wine aged for 16 months in French oak (25% new).