Our 2019 Pinot Noir, Opening Remarks, is an articulate and bright second vintage from DaLarDi Vineyard. Delight in the candied red fruit with hints of lemon pith on the palate. This wine shows wonderful, yet subtle umami notes that are unmistakable Pinot Noir.
This wine received 92 points in Wine Enthusiast.
The vineyard’s signature is a candied red fruit aspect— think along the lines of cherry Jolly Ranchers (!), with hints of lemon pith and Roobios tea leading into some subtle wafts of redwood bark. By selecting the slightly riper section of the vineyard, the bright notes of candied cherry have an almost subliminal darker-fruited undertone. After more than a year of bottle age, the wine shows some wonderful, yet subtle umami notes that are unmistakably Pinot Noir.
Pair this wine with soft cheeses, red berries, chicken, pork, mushrooms, and a sunny day outside with good friends.
Opening Remarks refers to the first procedure in a courtroom and, for Aptos Vineyard, is the namesake for our premier, most popular wine.
John Benedetti’s style emerges in this Pinot Noir. Winemaking Method: 100% destemmed to 1.5 ton Macrobin 48 fermenters. 10% saignee. 4 day cold soak at 40º, then allowed to gradually warm up until a native fermentation began. Racked-and-returned once in early May of 2020, then racked to the bottling tank in July. Bottled unfined and unfiltered in mid-July.
Straddling the Summit and Soquel Hills at 1,600ft in the Santa Cruz Mountains, cultivated fruit from DaLarDi Vineyard embodies similar characteristics to the popular Split Rail Vineyard of the same appellation. With vines planted in 2013, a youthful DaLarDi sits above the coastal fog belt, along with oak and madrone that line the vineyard. This location was carefully selected because its terroir produces classic Santa Cruz Mountain Pinot Noir fruit and is the “young cousin” to Split Rail Vineyards further South.
