Sea Smoke "Ten" Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir 2023

Ten is named for the ten Pinot Noir clones found on our estate vineyard. Our most masculine wine, it is brooding and intense, with firm, mature tannins and a long, velvety finish. Ten is not for the faint-of-heart and has been known, on occasion, to convert even the most fanatic Cabernet lover. A brooding and intense wine. The aromas begin with notes of blueberry, cassis, a hint of lavender followed by a myriad of exotic spices, some hazelnut, thyme and an element of licorice. Firm, mature tannins—evidence of Ten’s ageability—are followed by a long, velvety finish. Hand-harvested, clusters were sorted in the vineyard and then gently destemmed following an evening in our cold room. All ‘jack stems’ were removed on the sorting table. Musts were cold soaked in open-top fermenters for five days, and then inoculated with cultured yeasts to begin slow fermentation. Each tank was manually punched down two times per day, with a total maceration time of sixteen to twenty-eight days. Upon completion of primary fermentation and maceration, all free run wine was transferred to tank for settling, and then pressed at extremely low pressure (0.08 bars) to avoid extracting bitterness. After settling overnight both free- run and press wines were racked to barrels. Ten was bottled with no fining and no filtration.