2001 Santa Lucia Pinot Noir

40 barrels bottled in 750ml

Our second vintage of Santa Lucia was once again produced primarily from Paraiso Vineyard. A small amount of fruit was obtained from Tondre Vineyard as well. The vintage was moderate in every aspect. The crop size was neither big nor little. It looked like it might be an early vintage, but exceptionally mild summer conditions allowed the harvest to drift back onto a normal harvest date. The concentration of the fruit was moderate, but luckily it was easy to extract in the fermenters so a balanced wine resulted. This vintage shares aspects of both the ’97 and the ’93 vintages, both of which were kind to Pinot Noir.

The wine is composed of 70% Paraiso and 30% Tondre Vineyard. Paraiso Vineyard, planted in 1973, is one of the oldest in the Santa Lucia Highlands. These old vines give generous perfume and a silky sexy texture on the tongue. We once again used fruit from blocks four and six. Tondre Vineyard on the other hand is one of the newest plantings in the appellation. The wine here is typical of the newer clones. It is darker in color and richer in tannin. The vines are not mature enough to make a stand alone wine, but are a great structural component in the blend. Unlike the 2000 vintage, this wine is 100% Pinot Noir. The Pinot Gris was not available for co-fermenting this year.0

Winemaking is simple and traditional. Fruit from this appellation is destemed into small open top fermenters. The fruit is allowed to sit in the tank unfermented for three to five days before yeast is added. This can lower the protein content, and help prevent problems later. The wine is punched down for another five to fifteen days depending on how the extraction is going. In the case of the 2001 it took a longer time than normal to get the flavor out of the fruit and into the wine. Press wine and free-run wine are kept separate. This year none of the press wine was utilized in the final blend. The wine is aged in French oak barrels about one third of which are new. It is bottled after eleven months. All of this years wine was filtered as it helped take the edge off. I try to avoid fining as I feel it takes away from the typicity of the wine.

Our goal at Campion is to make the most typical wine possible. By that we mean a wine that faithfully expresses both the essence of the appellation and the vintage. The Santa Lucia appellation is the most distinctive of the three we work with. There is a marked purity of the fruit expression that evokes red cherries. There is also a pleasant herbal note that often is reminiscent of dried sage. The mouth feel is broad and dynamic. As a result it is outstanding with food. Almost all Pinot noirs are food friendly, but this one drinks almost too easily. It is a very difficult wine to say no to. This wine has medium to dark color density and the hue is towards bright ruby. It should reach a youthful peak in the bottle between late ’03 and early ’06, if it is properly cellared. Drinking older Pinots is an acquired taste, and if you have it, I believe this wine will satisfy that taste and remain graceful for many years.