Saint Georges Pinot Noir Old Vines 2021, Birichino, USA

From the producer: "The 2021 St Georges derives primarily from the elegant, floral, very small-berried pinot of the decades-old Besson planting at the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains. To its register of expansive red floral notes we add the muscular, brooding, deeply-flavoured old selections of pinot from a vineyard planted 1800’ up in the Chalone AVA, and just over the Gabilan Mountains in the remote Lime Kiln Valley. These sites together bring exceptionally textured depth and lifted aromatics to this dynamic Central Coast bottling.

Fermentation averaged about 35% whole cluster, with a higher proportion of the Chalone and Lime Kiln Valley lots left whole, and after several days in stainless and bins, native fermentation got going. A preliminary blend was put into a neutral barrel in October. It was racked just once when final barrel selections were made, prior to bottling unfiltered in July of 2022."

Oh, and the label is just lovely, right? California with a Burgundian twist.