Six Sigma 2017 Pinot Noir, Kaj’s reserve

Tasting Notes

2017 PINOT NOIR KAJ’S RESERVE

This wine will greet you with elegant, savory aromas of unripe cherries and fresh blueberries. As you sip, a mouthful of gentle tannins captures your attention, along with flavors of dried tea leaf and delicate, lush raspberries. Notes of dried cranberry are balanced with hints of anise, leaving you with a medium to long silky finish, without losing the impactful flavor of cloves and mulberries in the back of the palate.

Vineyard

We grow the grapes for our Pinot in a 2-acre block at the very top of the Diamond Mine Vineyard site on our ranch. This spot receives the afternoon breeze coming all the way from Lake Berryessa 22 miles away, creating a micro climate that allows this capricious grape to thrive. This vineyard site is named for the “Lake County Diamonds,” small volcanic-made pieces of quartz that litter the ground and glimmer in the sunlight. The vineyard sits at 1,700 ft. elevation and is surrounded by an untouched landscape. We use a no-till approach to managing the vineyard floor with the goal of minimal input. Sheep graze in the vineyards helping us compost the permanent cover crop.

Winemaking

The Pinot is our first red to be harvested every year. The fruit was hand-sorted prior to cold-soaking for five days at 50 F. The must fermented for 15 days with pump-overs twice a day. Following the alcoholic fermentation, the wine aged in French oak barrels, 20% new, for 9 months. Malolactic ferm- entation took place in the barrels. The wine was lightly filtered before bottling.

Wine and Food Pairing

Pairs well with grilled salmon and soft cheeses. Try with a mushroom risotto or a burger made from Six Sigma ground lamb.

Technical Notes