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The Lost Slough Vineyard lies in the heart of the Clarksburg AVA just east of the Sacramento River. It is planted below sea level (!) on the black peat soils of the California Delta. An advanced levee ststem holds back the vast tidal river waters. This interior zone sees hot days, but cooler nights from breezes blowing off the bay. The vineyard is under the direction of multi-generational grower Celia McCormack and her capable crew at KG Vineyard Management.

Tucked in between the first and second ridge, this neighborhood has established itself as the premier locale for high intensity Pinot Noir. The Sealift Vineyard was formerly an apple ranch and the old brick kiln still stands tall on the site. There are a number of aspects to this ranch but the dominant force is exposure to the Pacific ocean. To the south you can spot the northern most blocks of the Hirsch vineyard and to the north, down in the valley below, the iconic redwoods towering over the Peay Vineyard. The soils are sandy with fractured veins of shale resulting from all the seismic drama that is still unfolding in this young geologic zone. Just 5-miles from the Pacific at mid-level elevations most of the ranch is right at or just above the fogline, meaning the fruit gets slowly ripened under cool sunlight. Ideal for our kind of Pinot Noir.

Vintage 2024 unfolded on time, as if the season itself had been orchestrated. Generous winter and spring rains refreshed the soils, giving vines a deep reserve of water heading into a warm, dry flowering that produced beautifully set clusters. Summer brought warm days and cool nights, allowing grapes to ripen slowly while maintaining vibrant acidity, and the absence of rain kept disease pressure low. Harvest arrived under cool, sunny skies, enabling careful, deliberate picking at perfect maturity. Edmeades Vineyard was LIOCO's first foray into the lower-elevation sites (250') on the south side of Highway 128—those with more shading from afternoon sun allowing the fruit to develop more slowly, preserving freshness and nuance. The resulting wines carry a lower pH than those on the hillsides across the street, and a palpable freshness and taught structure on the palate. In 2024, we harvested all three clones (115, 777, and Swan) on the same morning and co-fermented them with 10% whole clusters (which was a first). The resulting wine shows layered aromatics, supple tannins, and a natural vibrancy.

The wildfires in 2020 necessitated a shift in fruit sourcing, and the extreme drought / massive winter frost of 2021 left us with too little fruit to bottle an Indica. The 2022 was a return to form as we tapped all three original fruit sources, ramped the carbonic maceration, and bottled a wine that everyone agreed was flat out delicious. It sold out before we could get the 2023 to bottle. Fear not! The 2023 is now bottled and it, like so many of our 2023s shows the once-in-ten-years fruit quality that this vintage will soon be known for. It is a blend of three historic Mendocino ranches—some dry-farmed, 1940s Carignan from Bartolomei (Talmage) and 1960s McCutchen (Pine Mountain), plus a healthy dollop of rare 1940s Valdiguie from Lolonis (Redwood Valley). We rocked 50% whole cluster, with two tanks going through carbonic maceration. Further, we pressed the juice off the skins early and "went to barrel sweet" to highlight the crunchy freshness of this wine. The result is chillable, medium weight red—with some grip—that reminds of us Cote de Brouilly but is unabashedly Californian.

The opportunity to access some legitimate Grand Cru quality Cabernet Sauvignon grapes at Monte Rosso Vineyard is what pushed us, at long last, into the world of red Bordeaux varieties. That coupled with an open door at the historic Bedrock Vineyard on the valley floor below–where our friends Morgan and Chris had just wrapped the final year on a 30 year grape contract with Mondavi (long a source for that legendary estate's Reserve Cabernet). The stars had finally aligned for LIOCO to attempt a CS inspired by those from another era—the 1970's California Cabs with low ABV, little to no new oak, and plenty of savory Bordeaux-like complexity. Our first ever CS, which we named Fondo meaning "from the lowest part of the valley," was a barrel selection we blended from both vineyards. The micro, drought concentrated 2021 vintage gave us a wine of great force and power, that once opened gulps down air, drinks well on Day 2, and should provide for decades of cellaring potential.

A deep coastal site in the lee of a forbidden Buddhist monastery. Sits at 700-800ft in the Garcia Watershed, 3mi. from the Pacific. Soils reflect an active seismic fault--Goldridge with weathered sandstone, loam and serpentine rock. The site is tucked between ridgelines and is protected from fierce ocean wind. Clones 76 + 4 were planted in 2012. The vineyard is being farmed Certified Sustainable, moving toward no till / regenerative.

VINIFICATION The fruit was hand-harvested in late August / early September and foot tread before being whole cluster pressed. The juice was fermented in 100% stainless steel and aged on the lees for 14-months. A gentle cross-flow filtration was done prior to bottling. SITE This wine is composed of several vineyards in the cooler western regions of Sonoma County. While each site is distinct, they share a common commitment to sustainable horticulture and strident farming. Our intention for this wine is to express the unique character of this region. Warm days and cool nights, tempered by consistent oceanic fog, yield nuanced Chardonnays balanced by brisk acidity. NOTES Vintage 2024 unfolded with remarkable precision. Abundant winter and spring rainfall replenished soils and established healthy water reserves ahead of the growing season. Flowering arrived under dry, warm conditions, encouraging excellent fruit set and uniform cluster development. Throughout summer, consistently warm days with cool nights allowed grapes to ripen steadily while preserving natural acidity. Notably, the absence of summer rain reduced disease pressure and gave us the freedom to fine-tune ripeness decisions and pick at optimal maturity. These balanced, on-time conditions translated directly into the character of the wines, particularly Chardonnay. The wines show fresh, lifted aromatics, vibrant yet integrated acidity, and impressive flavor intensity without heaviness. This SoCo installment features two exciting new vineyard sites that compliment the stalwart sources from John Balletto's ranches in the Sebastopol Hills. Namely some organically farmed, old vine Wente from Frank Johnson (17% of blend) and some top tier stuff from a cooler pocket of the Alexander Valley (Gamino Vineyard). Like the 2023, this wine was fermented and aged in 100% stainless steel — homage to the mouthwatering wine that inspired it: Louis Michel Chablis.

From the western end of this craggy ridge, we bottled 10-vintages of Demuth Vineyard Chardonnay...until those old vines were torn out. From the eastern end of it, we discovered another kingdom of Chardonnay by the name of Skycrest. At 2500’, it's the Anderson Valley's highest elevation vineyard. Pushing out of fractured grey shale and decomposed sandstone with veins of quartz crystal, it’s constantly in the wind, making the berries small and the yields low. With some airing this 2022 Skycrest starts to hum—loquat, pomelo, geranium, lemon curd, sesame, and rosemary. Enjoy with some fried clams, or a rockfish sandwich.

Saveria sits in a maritime canyon on Pleasant Valley Road near Aptos, where the Monterey Bay fog dissipates into patchy sunlight. Its deep fan of colluvial sand reacts quickly to shifts in temperature, a trait our viticulturalist Prudy Foxx likens to a great white shark, though we’re more interested in the effect on the grapes than the metaphor. On these reflective, sandy soils Pinot Noir develops a delicate, sourish berry character with leafy complexity, nuanced aromatics, and a precision that has become easily likened to this site. The 2024 vintage delivered us eight bins of uniform, palm-sized, and perfectly ripe clusters—AKA “grenades.” Fellow winemakers at our winemaking Co-op could only marvel and offer vague guesses about the source. We weren't drawing any maps for them. One must protect their sources from prying eyes! Saveria Pinot Noir just hits different with a tone as singular as Jimmy Page's Les Paul. You know it immediately when you hear it / taste it.

SITE A selection of premier Mendocino County vineyards were selected for this wine, with an emphasis on dry-farming, older vines, and sustainable viticulture. Pinot Noir clones 115, 667, 777, 2A, Pommard, Beaujolais, and Martini compose the blend. The goal was to capture the unique character of this region defined by the proximate Pacific Ocean, coastal redwoods, and headwaters of two major rivers. NOTES We're gonna go on record and say it: this wine is ONE OF ONE. There simply is not another Mendocino Pinot Noir being bottled today that claims such a wide range of vineyard sources. This wine spans the entire county from Potter Valley (interior) to Comptche (far coast). As such, it may be the first time we can assess the true "characteristics of place" for Mendocino. Like the 2023 before it, the '24 installment is infused with an exciting new source in the heavily forested, near-coast hamlet of Comptche. The Comptche lots were blended with stalwarts from the Anderson Valley, The Cole Ranch, and the Potter Valley. The AV component adds characteristic purple berry/red floral notes. The Cole Ranch piece contributes a pleasing grip/structure. And the Potter Valley piece provides the high tones in the wine, care of some rare Beaujolais-Clone Pinot Noir. We feel this wine from disparate but essentially Mendocino ranches blends out to give a wide aperture view of this wild, evergreen county, and make an authentic expression of Mendocino Pinot Noir.

NOTES We went back to Pocket Canyon in 2024. A fellow winemaker we know from Punchdown Cellars farms it organically for Anthill Farms and LIOCO exclusively. This sweet little vineyard gave us pea-sized berries and a gusher of sour red fruit in 2023. The site is planted with prized Swan clone on a steep slope enclosed by redwoods in a fog-choked canyon west of Forestville. It's dry-farmed by default because the coyotes chew on the drip lines, rendering them ineffective. Micro yields and intense concentration result. The other component in the wine is Sealift Vineyard on the West Sonoma Coast near Annapolis. Just a few miles from the Pacific, Sealift is constantly lashed by ocean winds and fog and provides a savory, saline quality that marries well with the red-fruit notes. The wine showcases what we love about Pinot Noir from the Sonoma Coast — energy, mouthwatering acidity, and signature tone.

This is the follow up vintage to the first-ever bottling (2023) of Comptche AVA Pinot Noir. Comptche translates roughly to "the land of many potholes" ("potholes" here meaning natural bathing holes). After years of petitioning, frontier growers John Peterson and Saul Ramirez were awarded appellation status for their vineyards Peterson and Costa—two of just three vineyards that qualify for the new AVA. Comptche is defined by its low lying elevation (300-400') and proximity to the nearby Pacific Ocean (14mi) with it's damp fog and cool air. The proximate Albion Wind Gap plays an important role channeling the ocean influence into the coastal valleys. Densely forested, extremely remote, and alive with black bears, bald eagles and steelhead—this is wilderness wine. "Pristine water" is a reoccuring theme you hear from Comptche locals. The wines remind us of the best deep-end sites in the nearby Anderson Valley—shot through with dark berries, blue florals, and coniferous—but for half the price. New frontiers often bring value so go ahead and join the pioneer party!

We’ll never forget the day we got a hand-written postcard from Eva Dehlinger. She inquired if we’d be interested in a new project she and her family were managing. The Vineyard was sandwiched between Kistler and Dehlinger on Vine Hill Rd, and was planted in the 1980s on rare 8X8' spacing on AXR-1 rootstock. It featured an old Wente clone called "Curtiss Clone" which was known for maintaining higher acidity. They were dry-farming it. Yep, interested! We named our block Casa Seca, or "dry house" after the 1880's brick apple kiln still looming over the vines. From the extreme 2022 vintage, with a heat dome bearing down on the state during harvest, we were encouraged to triage this fruit mercilessly and declassify most of it into our Estero Chardonnay. The fruit that made the Casa Seca designate was hand-selected on a sorting table. What little wine we bottled is opulent in a pleasing way. Still balanced with ripe acidity—there is an August orchard fruit quality to the wine that makes our mouths water. A sneaky cinnamon note too that reminds us of Meursault.

Edmeades is ideally situated in the deep end of the Anderson Valley on the south side of Hwy-128. The vineyard faces SxSW and tumbles down a sandstone slope into the Navarro River. Redwoods abound. A reliable breeze blows off the ocean surface and gets funneled through the vineyard and down valley towards Boonville. When you get a few local winemakers talking privately about the best terroirs in the Anderson Valley, the former Londer property in Philo often gets mentioned. The new owners bought the historic Edmeades property next door too, adjoined the two sites, and elected to carry forward the family name credited with planting the first-ever vineyard in the Anderson Valley AVA (c)1963. EDMEADES. We were graciously offered our pick of the litter and selected three blocks on the old Londer side which includes some heritage Swan clone. The droughty 2021 vintage gave us tiny clusters packed with flavor intensity and showcases the signatures of the Anderson Valley's prestigious deep end—freshly picked purple berries and red florals.

In 2022, a much tougher vintage, we declassified barrels of all of our single vineyard Chardonnays into Estero. The decision wrecked the COGS on the wine, but resulted in one of our favorite versions of this wine in some time. Maybe since 2015? In 2023, which was a near-perfect vintage with no heat, fires, or drama of any kind and October harvest dates (like we used to see in the 1990s), we decided to repeat the approach. So this Estero got a pedigree bump. It's 57% Burnside (borders Littorai) + 19% Piner + 10% Tidal Break + 8% Skycrest + 6% Casa Seca. And it's 100% delicious. We've also been over-vintaging this wine for the past few vintages, so it gets the long elevage and the complexity and Burgo redux that comes with it. The 3.3 pH means your mouth's gonna water.