Market Watch, Summer 2020

52 MARKET WATCH MARKETWATCHMAG COM SUMMER 2020 PHOTO BY KATRINE NALEID the varietal among them such Central Coast names as Monterey Sta Rita Hills and Edna Valley And while the luxury Pinot Noir segment still holds considerable weight in the market an abundance of affordably priced alternatives have come on stream in recent years Among them is a newer class of Pinot widely popularized by Meiomi thats characterized by bold rich and full bodied flavors that stand in stark contrast to light more delicately structured counterparts from Sonoma Burgundy and elsewhere Though Covid 19 has raised a host of questions for California vintners many of whom are only just beginning to reopen their tasting rooms after months of forced closures Pinots familiar prowess looks poised to lend it staying power for the long run Central Coast Success Californias North Coast has long been the premier growing region for Pinot Noir within the state with Napa and Sonoma each offering elegant award winning iterations of the grape But more specific sub AVAs further down the coast are coming to the forefront and carving out a significant place for themselves in the California Pinot Noir lexicon In southern Monterey Delicato Family Wines has owned thousands of acres in the little known San Bernabe AVA since the 1980s today the company remains the single largest landholder in the region The San Bernabe vineyards are the backbone of Delicatos Diora brand which first launched on a small scale in 2016 with a portfolio of high end Pinot Noir and Chardonnay San Bernabe has an ideal temperature and growing climate for Pinot Noir says Delicato vice president of marketing Kathy Pyrce Here the grape develops thicker skins so the wines are more deeply colored and structured She points to the influence of the coastal winds as one of the areas most distinctive qualities and among the reasons the TTB eventually granted San Bernabe an AVA designation in 2004 The Diora Pinot Noir offerings expanded into national distribution last year with La Petite Grace Pinot Noir 26 a 750 ml at the helm Vineyard designated wines serve solely as gatekeeper offerings according to Pyrce with availability limited to winery visits Nearby in the Sta Rita Hills Phinney debuted his first Pinot Noir led label Lusine last year The culmination of over three years of intensive work Lusine currently consists of three wines Sta Rita Hills Pinot Noir 65 a 750 ml Sleepy Hollow Vineyard Pinot Noir 99 and Annapolis Vineyard Pinot Noir 125 Key to creating this lineup were the specific vineyard sites according to Phinney Having those vineyard designates was extremely important to me given the differences they highlight in Pinot Noir he says We wanted to be respectful of the varietal and showcase how it changes according to the site that its grown on In this region what we ended up with are wines that arent so lean and Burgundian but theyre also not Meiomi Lusine part of the E J Gallo portfolio is currently a small project for Phinney who is keeping the brands reach restricted to DTC channels in California and New York in its initial years as a means of better fostering organic growth Napa based OneHope Wine offers a variety of Pinot Noir wines within its portfolio covering a wide swath of growing CALIFORNIA PINOT NOIR GRAPE BEARING ACREAGE 1995 2019 thousands Calendar Years Sources USDA NASS IMPACT DATABANK 10 20 30 40 50 19 18 17 16 15 10 05 00 95 Winemaker Dave Phinney pictured made a play in California Pinot Noir late last year with the launch of Lusine a Sta Rita Hills based Pinot Noir exclusive brand The Lusine lineup currently features three high end iterations of the varietal