2021 Calligraphy Pinot Noir Inaugural Release

Vineyard: Bootlegger's Hill
Owner/Manager: Charlie Chenoweth, Vigneron and 4th generation Sonoma County Farmer
Appellation: Russian River Valley, Sonoma County
Vine Age: Planted in 2009. Peak maturity and optimal health.
Goldridge soil: Fine, sandy loam from fractured sandstone from ancient seabed. Nutrient-poor.

Bootlegger’s Hill is a winemaker's vineyard with a tapestry of rootstocks and heirloom clones. Vineyard development and farming practices are focused on quality, experience and fine winegrowing. At 750 ft elevation perched between the towns of Occidental and Sebastopol, this is territory of dense fog and redwood forest. The site is a plateau that breaks both eastward and westward.

Clones: Calera, Pommard, 667, Elite, Wädenswil (co-fermented)
Harvested:October 1, 2021: 24.9 brix. 3.20 pH. 7.0 g/L titratable acidity.
Growing Season: Dry winter and spring, tiny berries, 15% light crop load, near perfect growing season

Winemaking:

  • Hand harvested in the cold of night.
  • 94% destemmed. 6% whole clusters.
  • Whole berries gravity-fed into a small, stainless steel, open-top tank.
  • Fermented with native yeast; 17 days total in the tank.
  • "Free run" juice (only) transferred to French oak barrels; 70% new/balance 1-year old Chardonnay barrels.
  • This 10-barrel lot was aged sur lies for 15 months prior to bottling. Minimal SO2 used.
  • Bottled in February 2023; unfined and unfiltered.
  • 14.5% ABV