2020 Kanzler Pinot Noir Estate
2020 Kanzler Pinot Noir Estate Very juicy, with raspberry, mulberry and boysenberry pâte de fruit notes that are vibrant and succulent in feel. This 2020 offers a nice licorice lacing on the finish, along with a touch of apple wood and a flicker of warm earth. This has the reserves to cellar a bit, too. Drink now through 2030.
Kanzler Vineyards
As a small, family-owned winery we live our lives amidst the vines. Our vineyard and the rhythms of the season are constant reminders that the soil, the air, the water and the vines are the essence of the wines we craft. We’ve always said that great fruit is the real star of our winemaking team. So we let the grapes take center stage, patiently nurturing the vines to produce fruit with intense, ripe and balanced flavors. Then we let time, traditional winemaking techniques and good French oak work their magic.
Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir is the dominant red wine grape of Burgundy, now adopted (and extensively studied) in wine regions all over the world. The variety’s elusive charm has carried it to all manner of vineyards.
These extend from western Germany (as Spätburgunder) and northern Italy to Chile, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand and the USA. California, Oregon and New Zealand are arguably the greatest centers for the grape outside its home territory. However great Pinot Noir is made in all of these territories.
The essence of Pinot Noir wine is its aroma of red berries and cherry (fresh red cherries in lighter wines and stewed black cherries in weightier examples). Many of the more complex examples show hints of forest floor. Well-built Pinot Noirs, particularly from warmer harvests, suggest leather and violets, sometimes recalling Syrah.
There are two theories regarding the Pinot name. One is that it came about because their bunches are similar in shape to a pine cone (pinot in French).
It may derive, however, from a place name in France such as Pinos or Pignols from where cuttings were obtained. Pignols in the Auvergne, for example, has cultivated Pinot since the Middle Ages.
It was previously believed that Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Précoce (Frühburgunder) et al were members of a “”Pinot Family”” of distinct grape varieties. But DNA profiling has shown them to share the same genetic fingerprint. Thus, they should properly be considered as mutations or clones of a common variety.