Littorai - Cerise Vineyard Pinot Noir 2019
Littorai Wines is a small family-owned winery located on the coast of Northern California , United States . It is owned by Heidi and Ted Lemon . Ted is a longtime winemaker who began his career by earning a degree in enology from the University of Dijon in 1981. He is the first American to be hired as winemaker and vineyard manager of an estate in Burgundy, the Domaine Guy Roulot in Meursault, where he resided until 1984. He worked in many prestigious estates in Burgundy: Domaine Georges Roumier, Domaine Bruno Clair, Domaine Parent, Domaine De Villaine, Domaine Delorme and Domaine Dujac . Heidi worked at several wineries in Napa before founding Littorai: Domaine Chandon, Robert Pecota Winery, Robert Long Vineyards and Stag's Leap Wine Cellars. In 2010, Ted was voted Winemaker of the Year by the San Francisco Chronicle. He has been nominated multiple times for a James Beard Award as Wine and Spirits Professional of the Year. Their cultivation techniques are the fruitful expression of many years of research in the fertile crosscurrents of permaculture, agro-ecology and biodynamics.
Cerise Vineyard is a high elevation hillside vineyard on a very steep and rocky south slope in the northeast mountain range above the town of Boonville. Although this is located at the warmer end of the Anderson Valley, its elevation and exposure places it directly within the fog layer, resulting in large diurnal fluctuations. Coupled with poor upper soils, this steep exposure allows fruit with a high skin/juice ratio to be harvested from struggling vines. The soils vary within the three cascading hills that make up the Littorai plots, allowing for complex and well-structured wines. The Cerise Vineyard plot was planted expressly for Littorai in 1998. This site is cultivated organically and biodynamically, not certified.
Grape variety: 100% Pinot Noir