Racines ‘de Montille Estate’ Pinot Noir, Sta Rita Hills, Santa Barbara Co., California 2023
A collaboration between Étienne de Montille and Brian Sieve of Domaine de Montille in Burgundy and Rodolphe Péters of Champagne Pierre Péters. Founded in 2017 to make Burgundian-style Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the cool Sta Rita Hills, the project’s first vineyard of its own, planted in 2020, is this 23-acre estate.
- WINEMAKER: Ryan Hannaford, onsite winemaker and viticulturist since 2021.
- FARMING: Practicing Organic
- TERROIR: Sta Rita Hills AVA, Santa Barbara County, California. A 23-acre hillside estate at 540 to 850 feet, planted under the guidance of geologist Yves Hérody. Thin limestone-based soils and sandy clay loams over fractured rock.
- VINIFICATION: Estate-grown, hand-harvested fruit. 40% whole cluster. Native yeast fermentation with foulage and pigeage. Malolactic fermentation.
- AGING: 19 months in 228L barriques, 20% new oak.
- TASTING NOTES: Ferny, floral nose with a bright, fresh fruit and acid balance. Richer and more intense than the Sta Rita Hills Cuvée, with an appetizingly dry finish.
- FOOD PAIRINGS: Roast duck, roast chicken, grilled salmon, mushroom dishes, and soft, aged cheeses.
- SCORES: Jancis Robinson, 17/20 (2023)
Racines ‘de Montille Estate’ Pinot Noir, Sta Rita Hills, Santa Barbara Co., California 2023
A collaboration between Étienne de Montille and Brian Sieve of Domaine de Montille in Burgundy and Rodolphe Péters of Champagne Pierre Péters. Founded in 2017 to make Burgundian-style Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in the cool Sta Rita Hills, the project’s first vineyard of its own, planted in 2020, is this 23-acre estate.
- WINEMAKER: Ryan Hannaford, onsite winemaker and viticulturist since 2021.
- FARMING: Practicing Organic
- TERROIR: Sta Rita Hills AVA, Santa Barbara County, California. A 23-acre hillside estate at 540 to 850 feet, planted under the guidance of geologist Yves Hérody. Thin limestone-based soils and sandy clay loams over fractured rock.
- VINIFICATION: Estate-grown, hand-harvested fruit. 40% whole cluster. Native yeast fermentation with foulage and pigeage. Malolactic fermentation.
- AGING: 19 months in 228L barriques, 20% new oak.
- TASTING NOTES: Ferny, floral nose with a bright, fresh fruit and acid balance. Richer and more intense than the Sta Rita Hills Cuvée, with an appetizingly dry finish.
- FOOD PAIRINGS: Roast duck, roast chicken, grilled salmon, mushroom dishes, and soft, aged cheeses.
- SCORES: Jancis Robinson, 17/20 (2023)