Tasting Notes

The fruit for this wonderful wine was harvested from the Distant Bay Vineyard in the Arroyo Seco appellation of Monterey County. Characterized by rich notes of apple, white flowers and hazlenut, this wine will age beautifully for 2-5 years.

From the Winery

The 2005 Pinot Blanc was barrel-fermented in a combination of older French and American oak barrels. Because we wanted to emphasize the round, ripe fruit notes, the wine saw limited sur-lie again, being racked off the lees and back into barrel after about 60 days. The absence of malo-lactic fermentation was a wine-making decision intended to emphasize the balancing acidity with which Arroyo Seco blessed the fruit. The wine has a satisfyingly unctuous texture to it; the wine's balancing acidity is fully...

Tasting Notes

This wine shows its birthplace in the huge draughts of black cherry, raspberry and pomegranate fruit that explode from the glass. As the wine opens, more subtle notes of forest floor and dried orange peel are found. Serving as a foundation to the fruit is a generous complex of caramel and brown sugar notes derived from the use of 100% new French oak.

In the mouth, the creaminess and sweetness of the barrel expression, coupled with very ripe fruit, create a silky mouthfeel that coats the tongue. The abundant acidity in the wine (characterized by the entrance of red cherry fruit) carries the flavors and aromas to a long conclusion. On the finish there is a pleasing sense of astringency which both serves as a counterpoint...

Tasting Notes

Compared to the 2003 offering, the 2004 Pinot Noir, Monterey expresses fruit a bit more diffidently. With aeration, aromas of cranberry, red cherry, anise and cinnamon come to the fore. As is customary, subtle hints of wood serve as a foundation for the intensity of the wine's aromatics and flavors. On the finish, this vintage's differences are also obvious in the wine's gorgeous acidity and elegant structure.

From the Winery

Exhibiting the intense dark fruits and beautiful acid balance typical of a Tom Stutz Pinot Noir, the 2004 La Rochelle Monterey Pinot Noir is showing beautifully now and will age gracefully for the next 3-5 years.