Shokrian Vineyard Pinot Noir 2018
Santa Barbara County

Vineyard:

Shokrian Vineyards or as it was previously know “Verna’s” is a beautiful 100-acre vineyard located 2 miles Northeast of Highway 101 in Los Alamos on Cat Canyon Road.  It has approximately 52 acres of mature vines primarily planted to Pinot Noir, Syrah and Chardonnay. The vineyard was planted and farmed by the Melville family since 1999 and sold to Cat Canyon Vineyards (Babak Shokrian) in 2013.

 

Winemaking:

The Pinot Noir fruit was originally destined to be made into Rosé, but it tasted so good that our winemaker decided to take 1000 lbs. and make a single barrel of traditional red Pinot Noir. The fruit was partially destemmed and fermented in a single 500L puncheon with the head removed for 14 days.  It was inoculated after a three-day cold soak and punched down 2-3 times a day until dryness.   The wine aged in a single once used Remond barrel for 14 months.  It was bottled unfiltered and unfined.

 

Tasting Notes:

The 2018 Shokrian Vineyard Pinot Noir pours a crystal-clear ruby color with a bouquet of sandalwood, ripe raspberry and summer chaparral.  The palate is silky and lush with just a hint of stemmy spice.  The ripe berry favors are framed by fine grained tannins and juicy acidity.