The 2022 Sandler Cortada Alta Vineyard Pinot Noir is the second time we've done a 100% whole cluster fermentation from Cortada. This traditional technique goes back to the origins of winemaking, millennia before there were fancy destemming machines. It produces a wine with more tannin and possibly more ageability than destemmed versions of the same grapes. 2022 was a vintage marked by a series of heat waves, with the most intense one coming over Labor Day weekend. We picked the Cortada Alta Pinot on September 6, a month earlier than average for this site. Enjoy this fruit forward Pinot from 2024 through 2034.
Wine Specs
Appellation
Santa Lucia Highlands
Aging
10 months in neutral French oak
Fermentation
100% whole cluster
Wine Profile
Production
66 cases produced