The 2018 SLH Pinot Noir owes much of its success to superior terroir and diligent, sustainable farming. It combines the Swan clone from the Escolle Road Vineyard and two clones from our McIntyre Estate Vineyard: 115 and ‘Old Vine.” The ‘Old Vine” block was planted more than four decades ago, making it the oldest plantings of Pinot Noir in the Santa Lucia Highlands AVA. It is own rooted – a rarity in Californian. The crop was thinned to a maximum of three tons per acre or 1.5 lbs. of fruit per foot of cordon. Row orientation is primarily north/south in both vineyards, which provides even sun exposure from morning to afternoon.
