Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir 2023
“There is a nice depth of savory notes, earth, and spice, balanced by pretty, brambly bright red fruit”
Vineyard: The grapes come from several small, organically farmed vineyard sites around the Santa Cruz Mtns. Each site brings its unique mountain micro-climate signature to the blend. The commonalites shared include a cool climate during the growing season and low nitrogren/high calcium soils, limiting yields and increasing depth and mineral concentration. Proximity to the Monterey Bay yields fresh, saline wine.
Winemaking: Grapes are hand-harvested based on physiological cues as well as the flavor of the fruit on the vines. All fermentation occurs naturally and spontaneously, and Madson often utilizes pied de cuves (or small mother fermentations that begin in the vineyard) to innoculate their fermenters. They find that the natural yeast strains found in the vineyard make fermentations that are slower and more diverse, ultimately showcasing a greater complexity of flavor.
Élevage occurs mostly in neutral or seasoned oak casks. Generally, each wine will be racked (removing the juice from the lees, or dead yeast cells) once after pressing and once before bottling. Each wine remains in the same cask for the majority of its life. At bottling, the wine will receive a small sulfur addition. Bottled wines are stored in a cool cellar until they are released.
Tasting Notes: The 2023 vintage was the coldest on record in the Santa Cruz Mtns since 1982. This shows in this wine. There is a nice depth of savory notes, earth, and spice, balanced by pretty, brambly bright red fruit. There is a flinty quality on the nose. This is an intriguing wine. It’s layered and nuanced and so versatile. It piques your curiosity, keeps you coming back for more, and the next thing you know the bottle is half empty!
Producer…
Madson Wines
Cole Thomas founded Madson Wines in the spring of 2018, alongside Ken Swegles and Abbey Chrystal. The wines of Madson are utterly unique – nuanced, subtle, unmistakably Alpine in character, yet influenced by the vineyards’ close proximity to the Pacific Ocean.
