The Reserve is an exclusive less than 50 case selection of Pinot Noir representing our most intriguing wine in the cellar. The final blend represents countless hours of tasting wine from barrel. Only with such in-depth knowledge of our subject, were we able to select these 2 barrels of Pinot Noir.
Every block of Pinot Noir within our 35 acre vineyard is individually hand harvested at its peak of flavor maturity and intensity. Block by block, the fruit is fermented in small 1.5 ton lots and matured for over 18 months in French oak barrels.
Every vineyard block and clone/rootstock combination showcases something unique and special from the vineyard. After fermentation is complete, the wine is placed into a selection of barrels to mature. We source French oak barrels from several coopers. The wine takes a different path to maturity in each barrel, developing its own nuances.
We taste all of our barrels of wine many times throughout the year. We experience the evolution of flavors and aromas and remember the significant events in our vineyard. The excitement of an early bloom, the mystery of a very light fruit set, the discovery of color change at veraison, and the rapture of harvest. Tasting each barrel of wine provides us a snapshot in time. We experience the wine’s development.
As we taste wine through the cellar, we can usually agree on when we have found the best barrel or two of Pinot Noir. When that happens, we find that we disagree on whose blend it is going into. And when we find that we agree to disagree, we have just found The Reserve.