Stephen Ross Wine Cellars Bien Nacido Pinot Noir 2017 Red Wine

Stephen Ross Bien Nacido Vineyard Pinot Noir 2017

Santa Maria Valley, CA

We’re big fans of Stephen Ross wines, especially their Pinot Noirs! It’s a hidden gem of a winery, tucked in the San Luis Obispo region of coastal central California. Winemaker Stephen Dooley has crafted a beauty of a wine with this Bien Nacido Pinot! So full of the exquisite flavors that define this famous Santa Maria vineyard!

TASTING NOTES

Clear and dark ruby in color, this is classic Pinot Noir Clone 667. On the nose, dried rose petal, black cherry, cardamom, forest floor, graphite and the signature black pepper of BNV. The mouth is youthful and nervy in its acidity and complexity. This is a keeper.

VINEYARD

Bien Nacido Vineyards are located in the Santa Maria Valley, part of the south Central Coast of California. The first vines at Bien Nacido went into the ground in 1973, and through time the site has proven to be an exceptional place to grow Pinot Noir. The valley spans in an East-West orientation and is open to the Pacific Ocean to the West where regular summer-time afternoon cool breezes from the ocean are borne; it is located at 34 degrees latitude and receives lots of bright sunlight.

VINTAGE

The 2017 vintage was marked by an abundant amount of rainfall during the 2016/2017 winter at 19 inches. The growing season was relatively cool. There were several days of warmish weather in May and June, but only into the 80s. There was a small rain event in early August, which measured a tenth of an inch. After the Pinot Noir was harvested, there was a heat wave lasting three days, September 1 – 3, peaking on September 2 at 106 degrees.

WINEMAKING

Classic Burgundian winemaking techniques were used in making this wine; cold soak for several days, punched down in open top tanks, pressed with a state-of-the-art stainless steel basket press and aged in Burgundian French oak barrels.

Vineyard: Bien Nacido Vineyards, Block G, Dijon Clone 667
Harvest: Harvested and sorted by hand on August 31, 2017
Fermentation: 12% whole clusters, 88% destemmed clusters, fermented in 2.5-ton open-top stainless steel tank
Aging: Aged in French oak barrels 18 months.20% new Tonnellerie D’Aquitaine
Alcohol: 13.9%
pH:3.50
T.A.: 5.62g/L
125 Cases | Bottled March 20, 2019