Carneros Pinot Noir Lee Vineyard

Current Vintage: 2007

For nearly three decades we've had the opportunity to roam Carneros, seeking the best Pinot Noir vineyards for use in our “Garnet”, “Carneros”, and “Reserve” bottlings. In the last twenty years we have bottled numerous small non-commercial amounts of select individual vineyard wines for our wine library. We watch how these wines age and how the expression of terroir is nuanced by the specifics of each growing season. We liked the results so we decided to go public with our venture into showcasing the outstanding plantings of the Carneros appellation.

Ira and Shirley Lee first planted their vineyard on Los Carneros Avenue in 1969 following closely the other modern viticultural pioneers of Carneros. Louis Martini got things rolling by planting Pinot Noir at Stanly Ranch in the ’50s, and Andre Tchelitschef followed suit with 80 acres of Pinot at BV-5 in 1962. A year later the “larger-than-life” Rene di Rosa established Winery Lake Vineyard and brought his promotional talents to proving the quality of Carneros as pinot country. Rene and Ira Lee worked closely together to make the pristine rolling hills safe for future vineyard development by creating Keep Carneros Green to fend off unwanted suburban sprawl. Now with many of Carneros’ gently rolling hills carpeted with Pinot Noir vines the quality and character of Lee Vineyards still stands out after more than thirty-five years.

Saintsbury has made Pinot Noir from Lee Vineyards since the 1982 vintage and the vineyard continues to be one of our most important suppliers of great pinot. With this long experience we felt it was the perfect time to present Lee Pinot Noir on its own: one special vineyard, one spectacular terroir.

The 2007 Saintsbury Lee Vineyard Pinot Noir has brooding aromas of ripe plums, spice box, tobacco, rose hips and hawthorn. Chocolate-laced briary black fruit flavors are supported by fine tannins and lively acidity. Lee has a wonderfully intriguing array of complex flavors that will evolve nicely for years to come.

© 2006 Saintsbury
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