The Clos Pepe Vineyard has, at least
in the way we view it, many similarities to the Garys’ Vineyard. Clos Pepe is incredibly
popular, remarkably well known, and has over the years undoubtedly produced some of our
best Pinot Noirs. But we too feel that there is improvement that can be made in the wines
from this cool, Santa Rita Hills location.
However, in 2006 we needed to approach the entire process differently than at Garys’. Despite
waiting until mid-October to pick, we didn't feel that the stems were ripe enough to
utilize whole cluster fermentation. Instead, we decided to bleed off a bit of juice from one
of our two sections (the pond, not the hillside) and to increase the cold soak time to seven
days. We also let all of the fermentations happen on their own with their own indigenous
yeasts. Finally, we decided to let the wine age in barrel longer than many of the other
wine—not bottling until January of 2008.
The resulting Clos Pepe Pinot Noir is one of the better wines that we have produced from
the vineyard. Big and rich, but never “over-the-top,” we believe this is a Clos that will improve
with some time in bottle. Wine Spectator rated this wine 91 Points and said this,“sleek, elegant and refined, showing a mix of dried currant, black cherry, herb and light cedary
oak, with hints of spice and herb. Impressive for its balance, depth, restraint, and complexity.”
Production: 483 cases
Release Date: July 2008
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