Catorce 21 Pinot Noir

Sta. Rita Hills, California | Old Vine * Sanford & Benedict Vineyard

The 2021 Co^lluvial™ “Catorce” Pinot bottling is grounded in the majesty of California’s Santa Rita Hills AVA (American Viticultural Area). The fruit is drawn from the “Founder Vines” of Sanford & Benedict Vineyard.  First planted in 1971, this vineyard is home to the oldest Pinot Noir vines in Santa Barbara County. Named one of the five most important and iconic vineyards in California by Wine Enthusiast, the Sanford & Benedict Vineyard is renowned for both its historical significance and the continued quality of the fruit it produces.  The vineyard has some of the most complex soils we have been lucky enough to work with.  Mostly clay and clay loam, this hillside vineyard is also strewn with pockets of limestone, fracture shale, chert and other sedimentary deposits. This mixture gives the soil great water holding capacity from the clay but breaks up the matrix by aeration and drainage from the stony components.

Tasting Notes

“Fresh raspberry and strawberry aromas are dusted in fennel pollen and cut by blood orange rind on the nose of this single-vineyard expression of this iconic site’s old vines. The palate is tense in texture and rustic with earthy, dusty elements of sumac and wild thyme that elevate the cranberry core. ” Matt Kettmann – Wine Enthusiast

“Light ruby color. An overtly, and very attractive, floral-suffused essence of red berry fruit nose displays hints of exotic tea and crushed anise. The lighter weight but quite punchy and precise flavors possess a caressing, even seductive, texture before concluding in a bitter pit fruit-inflected finish. This could use better depth but there is no doubt that this is one very pretty pinot.”  Allen Meadows’ Burghound Issue #92

“Coming from one of the top sites in the region, the 2021 Pinot Noir Catorce Old Vine Sanford & Benedict Vineyard was 70% destemmed and spent 18 months in 20% new oak. Pulled from a single block of heritage clones, it has a translucent medium-ruby hue to go with impressive aromatics of sweet strawberries, framboise, spring flowers, and sappy green herbs. It’s medium-bodied, has a supple, elegant mouthfeel, nicely integrated acidity and tannins, and a good finish. This pretty, nuanced, elegant Pinot Noir will keep for 5-7 years.”   Jeb Dunnuck

“Bright and direct, with a mix of damson plum and bitter cherry notes streaking through, flanked by a light sandalwood frame. Finishes with touches of dried fruit and potpourri.” James Molesworth-Wine Spectator

Food Pairings

Roast Duck with Cherry Sauce or Spicy Seared Tuna Asian Marinade.

To download the full Co^lluvial™ Information Sheet, click here.