2014 Wayfarer Pinot Noir
The Estate

This rich and harmonious cuvee of our 12 Pinot Noir clones showcases Wayfarer’s vibrant spectrum of single-vineyard, estate-grown fruit and a distinctive minerality. A deep iridescent ruby, the wine interweaves aromas of sun-drench blackberry, wild strawberry and dark cherry with fresh notes of forest floor and sea salt, followed with savory prosciutto and baking spice. A supple entry leads to a generous mid-palate flush with juicy summer berries and fine sweet tannins. Rich and elegant yet focused, the wine takes it time as it finishes with sweet notes of lemon peel and lightly roasted coffee. Beguiling upon release, this wine will continue to evolve over the next 10 years.

The 2014 season started as one of the earliest on record, well before the threats of late winter frosts had passed. Fortunately, the tender buds and shoots escaped without damage and we relaxed into an exceptionally nice spring and cool summer.  The gentle pace of the growing season afforded us time to be especially meticulous with canopy management. We farm each of our 30 blocks individually to tailor the shoot positioning and leafing, vine by vine, and specific to each clone.  Such fine-tuned farming is critical to success on the extreme Sonoma Coast, particularly for our vineyard with its great diversity of clones planted at varying elevations and exposures – east facing, west facing, north side, and south side. By the end of the growing season we have typically visited each vine a dozen times. Our 2014 wines exhibit a pronounced minerality, due in part to our Goldridge soil and sandstone mother rock, as well as cold spells throughout the year. These wines are very open and generous right out of the bottle; possessing soft tannins and great acidity, with a slightly higher pH than previous vintages.