There is nothing like a well-crafted pinot noir, with its heady aromatics, plush fruits, layered, terroir-driven characters, sumptuous texture, and exquisite balance. While we are fortunate to have an abundance of quality pinot available to us, there are a handful of estates whose wines stand head and shoulders above the rest. The cuvées of Au Bon Climat are in the upper echelon of California pinot noirs, and we are thrilled to bring you this offer today!

Jim Clendenen, founder of Au Bon Climat, was one of the Central Coast's winemaking pioneers. You may remember his wines if you ever attended the Boston Wine Expo, Nantucket Wine Festival, or any of the many wine dinners he hosted in the Greater Boston Area over the last 20+ years. Au Bon Climat wines were also prominently featured in the film "Sideways" as exceptional examples of the heights that California pinot noir could attain.  Jim passed on a few years ago but his commitment to excellence lives on and grows even stronger in the efforts of his children, Isabelle & Knox Alexander.

Named after Jim Clendenen’s son Knox, today's offer is a blend of Au Bon Climat's best lots from the Santa Maria Valley appellation, with the majority of the 2020 vintage (86.5%) coming from the prestigious Bien Nacido Vineyard and the balance from Runway Vineyard just next door to Bien Nacido. 

The fruit for the Au Bon Climat Pinot Noir was hand-harvested, fermented in 5-ton open-top fermenters, and punched down twice per day. These punch-downs mixed skins that rose to the surface back into the juice to extract flavor and color. 25% of the fruit was whole-cluster fermented, a rarity for this cuvée. The wine was pressed to complete dryness and was aged on the lees for 22 months in new François Frères French oak barrels.

Indeed, the 2020 is one the best vintages of Knox Alexander Pinot Noir ever produced. Its outgoing personality highlights good intensity, expressive character, balance, and complexity.