The Hilt Estate Pinot Noir 2016
The Hilt Estate Pinot Noir 2016, is exotic and perfumed with an enticing combination of black, green and red notes. In addition, black pepper, blackberry, Balaton cherry, and purple sage. Absolutely jumps out of the glass. Defined by velvet attack and silky texture that are the trademarks of the 2016 vintage. While a powerful inner perfume mingles with powdered tannins. The Hilt Estate Pinot Noir 2016 is the larger production red from this team. Yet it certainly gives a good view of the quality coming from the Hilt wines. While black cherries, black raspberries, graphite, peppery herbs, and underbrush notes flow to a medium-bodied, supple, beautifully layered Pinot Noir that has ripe, present tannins, plenty of mid-palate flesh, and remarkable purity. Drink it any time over the coming 7-8 years.
The Hilt’s 2016 Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills is excellent, wafting from the glass with an exciting bouquet of dark wild berry fruits, licorice, rich soil, rose hip and orange peel. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, bright and expansive, with velvety tannins and a crunchy core of primary fruit, its bright line of acidity carrying through to the mouthwatering finish. The 2016 Pinot Noir Estate is a powerful, dense wine. Today, the tannins are huge and imposing. Even so, the depth and persistence of the fruit is impossible to miss which gives the wine a decidedly chunky feel. Based on how the 2016 showed from barrel, I have to imagine this is not the best showing for the Estate.
The Hilt is defined by its three maritime influenced vineyards in the southwest corner of the Sta. Rita Hills appellation: Radian, Bentrock and Puerta del Mar. Wines defined by place, style and time. In the southwest corner of Sta. Rita Hills AVA lies a rugged, windswept, coastal vineyard, called The Hilt Estate; estate grower producer of stunning Pinot Noir and Chardonnay reflective of this dynamic corner of California. Pushing the limits; in the farthest southwest reach of the Sta. Rita Hills AVA is home to Radian & Bentrock Vineyards, these vineyards dictate The Hilt style. The numerous microclimates and unique soils provide a multilayered backdrop to create 3 unique expressions: Estate, The Guards, and Single Vineyards. In 2014, Matt Dees, Ruben Solorzano & team took on operation and farming of Radian and Bentrock Vineyards and shifted to precise sustainable & organic farming to transform and revitalize the soil.
The Estate wines are defined by the fruit and flavors of our little southwestern corner of the Sta. Rita Hills. They speak of the nuances and complexities of our properties as a whole. These wines take into account the many aspects, clones, soil types, and other properties of our estate. They give us the maximum amount of blending components and represent the most complete wines in our portfolio.
