2017 | Rhys Vineyards | Alesia Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir

Medium to deep ruby, the 2017 Alesia Pinot Noir Santa Cruz Mountains has a spicy nose of pipe tobacco, Earl Grey tea leaves and dried rose petals with dried herbs, woodsmoke, prosciutto and licorice over warm cranberries and blackberries. Light to medium-bodied, it has a good core of earthy fruit with a very soft frame and juicy acidity, finishing long and spicy.

Reviews:

• Jeb Dunnuck: Coming all from the Santa Cruz Mountains, the 2017 Pinot Noir Santa Cruz Mountains Alesia is similarly colored yet offers a more complex, mineral-laced style. Notes of black raspberries, sassafras, forest floor, and ample spice nuances give way to a medium to full-bodied, beautifully polished, layered Pinot Noir that's already drinking beautifully, yet will cruise for 7-8 years in cool cellars if you're so inclined.

Producer Information

Rhys Vineyards is a well-regarded wine producer based in the Santa Cruz Mountains and sourcing fruit from mountain vineyards both in the Santa Cruz Mountain AVA and the Anderson Valley AVA, some 150 miles (240km) north. The Californian estate, which established its first vineyards in the mid-1990s, focuses on three grape varieties: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah. Six of the estate's vineyards are based in the Santa Cruz Mountains to the south of San Francisco. These vineyards all differ slightly in terms of terroir, particularly when it comes to soil and aspect. The soil types range from clay loam to shallow, rocky soils – all giving distinct characters in the final wines. The individual vineyards' mesoclimates are largely dependent on their aspects and degrees of slope, as each has a different exposure to sunlight and breezes from the nearby Pacific. One of the vineyards, Skyline, is one of California's highest vineyards, at an altitude of 2360ft (720m) above sea level. Rhys Vineyards make a range of single-vineyard Pinot Noirs, as well as several Chardonnay and Syrah wines. The company also has a 14-hectare (35-acre) site in Anderson Valley planted to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. In the winery, grapes are vinified by block in small, one-ton fermentation tanks. The grapes are treaded by foot, instead of using mechanical punchdowns or pumpovers. Rhys Vineyards uses natural yeasts for fermentation, and the wines are aged in French oak.

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