Au Bon Climat Sanford & Benedict Pinot Noir – Santa Ynez Valley 2020

“The 2020 Pinot Noir Sanford & Benedict Vineyard Santa Barbara Historic Vineyards Collection is a powerful, expressive wine. Dark fruit, lavender, cloves, leather and incense fill out the layers. Dynamic and full of energy, the 2020 has a ton to offer. I would give it a few years to settle down. Readers will find a Pinot of real substance. This bottling is intended to be the best lots from Sanford & Benedict done with a high percentage of stems, about 50% in this vintage.” 2024 -2032
93 Points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous, July 2023

One of the original vineyards in the county, the story of Sanford and Benedict Vineyard is a soap opera. It began as the dream of Richard Sanford and Michael Benedict. After some years of intrigue and all sort of rumors, Michael Benedict sold the vineyard in the 1990s. If the vineyard was going to be a success, certain vineyard practices had to modernize. The new owner, being a capitalist, decided to grow a more commercial crop of grapes. Drip irrigation was installed, squirrels and gophers were controlled, and fungicides were applied to prevent the entire vineyard from being lost to mildew. Even bio-dynamic vineyards need to apply fungicides to prevent mildew. With these few innovations, the vineyard started to thrive. The crop varied in quantity; most years the crop was light, but the quality was always first class. The vineyard is now sustainably farmed.

Planted in 1971, the fruit used is selected from the oldest section of prestigious Sanford & Benedict Vineyard located in the very cool Sta. Rita Hills appellation. It is truly one of the great Pinot vineyards of America.20 months 50% new François Frères French oak

From The Winemaker
The vineyard has a mantle of hard, siliceous chert-gravel covering deep, welldrained soils. When combined with the cool climate (Region 1) provided by nearby the Pacific Ocean, it is a perfect medium for quality Pinot and Chardonnay. We selected grapes from one of the “old vine, own rooted” sections at Sanford and Benedict. After careful hand picking in the early morning hours, the grapes arrived at the winery nice and cold. Cold grapes give time for a cold soak and a slower fermentation. During the cold, extended soak, the fruit driven aromas and flavors were extracted from the grapes. The slower fermentation also assisted in the gradual extraction of additional aromas and flavors as the alcohol content slowly rises. About 50% was whole cluster fermented. After the grapes reached dryness, the grapes were pressed, and the wine was put in François Frères French oak barrels, 50% new. The wine was gently racked in the late spring and was returned to barrel for a total of 20 months. No fining or filtration was necessary.