BONA FIDE PINOT NOIR

Bona Fide Pinot Noir

Bona Fide is the Latin term for "In good trust" which refers appropriately to our relationship with the owners of the vineyards, the Lötter family, which extends back 30 years. It is only through a relationship based on complete trust that the resulting wine will do justice to this special site.

Latest release (2022)

The final vintage of this wine is possibly the most powerful. Taut and dense, the nose shows intense fruit — notably strawberry, cranberry and sour cherry while tomato leaf, nutmeg, cinnamon, olives, light woodsmoke and wet moss deepen the complexity. The palate is equally coiled and decadent; cocoa, black cherry and a hint of mint recall Black Forest cake. Deftly integrated tannin and fresh acidity will conspire with that dense core of fruit to support cellaring beyond 2035.

Vinification

Fermentation occurred spontaneously with no commercial yeasts added. There was a 50% whole bunch component with the rest de-stemmed but left intact as whole berries. Total time on skins was five weeks whereafter the wine spent 11 months in French oak barriques. 20% new oak.

Technical Analysis