2022 Arnot-Roberts Fox Creek Vineyard Pinot Noir

Arnot-Roberts was founded in Healdsburg in 2001 when Duncan Arnot Meyers and Nathan Lee Roberts decided to make single vineyard wines in very small quantities. The men are childhood friends who grew up in Napa Valley. Before teaming up to make their own wine, Meyers worked as a winemaker and Roberts was a cooper. Arnot-Roberts sources grapes from Sonoma County, the Santa Cruz Mountains, the Sonoma Coast, Napa Valley and Clear Lake. They make Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and white blends. They are also known for having experimented with Trousseau, a red-wine grape that is native to the Jura region of France but rarely planted or used for winemaking in the U.S. Arnot-Roberts wines are in high demand but mainly available through their mailing list. Robert M. Parker Jr. has called Arnot-Roberts wines “impressively endowed (and) well-made…”

Monterey AVA is in Monterey County, south of San Francisco. The long, narrow appellation is a 100-mile ribbon of land that extends from north Monterey County south to the edge of Paso Robles. Most of the AVA is considerably inland from the Pacific Coast, and to the east of the Santa Lucia mountain range. About 40,000 vineyard acres are inside the AVA, making it one of California’s larger appellations. Monterey County, in fact, produces almost as much wine as Napa County because the floor of the valley is taken up by large industrial vineyards producing grapes for bulk wine. However, there are also many premier wine estates within Monterey AVA and its numerous sub-appellations. Monterey AVA includes four recognized micro climates, ranging from a cool, maritime climate at the north end to what is known in California as a Region 4 climate in the south, meaning relatively hot and dry. Monterey AVA includes parts of Carmel Valley and Salinas Valley. More than 50% of the grapes grown in the Monterey AVA are Chardonnay, though the many terroirs and micro climates mean that numerous grapes grow well. Merlot, Pinot Noir, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Zinfandel and Pinot Blanc are widely planted.

This red wine is relatively light and can pair with a wide variety of foods. The grape prefers cooler climates and the wine is most often associated with Burgundy, Champagne and the U.S. west coast. Regional differences make it nearly as fickle as it is flexible.