AROMA: Black cherry, rosemary flower, orange Pekoe tea
FLAVOR: Italian plum, violet pastille, star anise
FOOD PAIRINGS: wild salmon burgers, BBQ pork fried rice, soy glazed pork chops
VINIFICATION: 4.07 tons hand-harvested and sorted on September 9th. Drought concentrated berries (Clone 115) fermented on wild yeasts in small open-top tanks with 33% whole clusters. A 4-day cold soak preceded regular cap management (mostly pumpovers) during a 14-day fermentation. Aged undisturbed, for 10 mos. in 33% new French oak. Bottled without fining or filtration.
SITE: This spectacular "true coast" vineyard with unobstructed views of the Pacific was a former apple farm. In a prime spot at 700ft. between the first and second ridge, 5mi. from the sea. Clones 115 and 777 planted in 1999 on well-draining sandy-loam soils full of fossilized scallop shells. This area is heavily forested, reliably cool and foggy, and ideally suited for high energy Pinot Noir.
NOTES: 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.
