The Data

Country   USA

Appellation   Santa Rita Hills

Varietal   Pinot Noir

Retail Price   $96

ABV   14.2%

Score   4.5 Stars/94 points

In the Glass

Brilliant, medium ruby color.

The aromatics are intense, offering scents of red cherry and boysenberry with supporting notes of strawberry, slate, and five spice.

The palate echoes the nose delivering a red fruit-driven core with flavors of red plum, pomegranate, oak, and baking spices. The finish is long and lingering with ripe tannins.

Full-bodied and perfectly balanced with a supple texture.

Cool Factor

We absolutely love the fruit, the unique philosophy, and the choice of winemakers making this wine totally cool.

Value Grade

This Pinot is not designed for mass consumption. It's pricey for sure but fewer than 100 cases are made making it pretty rare.

Analysis

This is our second vintage of Exprimere Pinot Noirs. Like last year, the two Pinot Noirs are created as siblings exploring the nature and nurture question. The fruit is sourced from the same vineyard, the Peake Ranch, in the Santa Rita Hills of Santa Barbara County — a proven Pinot Noir zone. The difference lies solely in the winemaking choices. Mia, featured here, is treated very gently, being fermented at a cool temperature, cap pushed down softly, and rested in neutral barrels sur lie. Its sibling, Persey, is treated in a bit of a rough-and-tumble manner being fermented hot and punched down more frequently. The barrels are rolled out into the sun to heat up and then regularly stirred. The wines are made by James MacPhail, an award-winning winemaker familiar to every BevX reader via Tongue Dancer Wines. We liked Mia a lot last year but this year’s Mia is more complex and supple — delicious.

How to Enjoy

We love the easy charm of this wine and it needs nothing but a glass. As a food pairing you can't beat prime rib or pan-seared duck breast.