Santa Maria pinot noir Isabelle

L’assemblage de cette cuvée dédiée à la fille de Jim Clendenen change chaque année. Le 2019 est issu de raisins de six vignobles et de quatre AVA différentes à travers la Californie, d’où son appellation générique. Le dernier millésime dégusté avait des airs d’un rouge de la Côte de Nuits avec un coup de soleil; à la fois généreux, soyeux, complexe et élégant.

The late Jim Clendenen named this wine after his daughter, now a leader in her family winery, and he always made sure it was tip-top. This vintage hits the nose with pomegranate, rose-petal and light eucalyptus-leaf aromas, while the tense palate is brisk with roasted raspberry and pine-needle-tea flavors.

The 2019 Pinot Noir Isabelle comes from six different vineyards and four different AVAs. Its medium ruby hue gives way to a plump, rounded, beautifully textured, medium-bodied effort displaying lots of spicy red fruits, notes of flowers, new leather, and sandalwood, supple tannins, and plenty of mid-palate depth. Wonderfully balanced, it’s a charming, classic, impeccably made Pinot Noir.

The 2019 Pinot Noir Isabelle is bright and effusive, with tons of aromatic presence and fine balance. Sweet red cherry fruit, orange peel, spice, and dried herbs open first, followed by a host of perfumed floral notes that lead into the mid-palate and finish. The 2019 is silky and quite elegant, all it really needs is another year or two in bottle to come into its own.

This blend from multiple vineyards and appellations is named for the daughter of the late Jim Clendenen. Polyphonous at the moment, this offers an unruly combination of unique, but still unformed aromatics. Mint and pine notes, pepper and amaro scents, all support dark fig and plum fruit. You should wait, probably three or four years, before opening.