Elkhorn Peak Cellars Pinot Noir

Tasting notes & discussion 147

Worried the Summer heat will get to your wine before it gets to you? Try our new Summer Hold option here!

90 pts (Wine Enthusiast, Sommelier Challenge)

Typically $54.00/bottle from Elkhorn Peak Cellars
Vintage 2019 from Napa Valley
Packages have been upgraded to 2-day transit for increased protection.
Available for AZ; CA; CO; CT; DC; FL; GA; IA; ID; IL; IN; KS; LA; MA; MD; ME; MI; MN; MO; MT; NC; ND; NE; NH; NJ; NM; NV; NY; OH; OK; OR; PA; RI; SC; SD; TN; TX; VA; VT; WA; WI; WV; WY
Use coupon code KAOLISCAVE to save $10 on this or any other Casemates event this summer. (One use per account, account must have been created before 6/9/2025, coupon expires 8/31/2025.)
Sold by participating winery or licensee, fulfilled by Wine Country Connect

About Elkhorn Peak Cellars: “We’re a small, family-run operation—grown slowly and sustainably, without corporate influence. We built this business from the ground up, reinvesting season after season, guided by a deep respect for the land and a dedication to our craft. Every decision—from pruning to bottling—is made with care, intention, and pride in doing things the right way. Ken Nerlove, Founder/Grower, works alongside his daughter, Elise Nerlove, and a tight-knit crew of family and friends to run Elkhorn Peak Cellars.”

The Elkhorn

TASTING NOTES: “The color of this wine is a beautiful blend of ruby and brick red. On the nose, this wine leads with big red fruit like ripe red cherry, plum and raspberries intertwined with a subtle hint of earthiness. On the palate, dark Bing cherries take center stage, along with flavors of raspberry bramble. The fruit-forward flavors carry over to an enchanting mix of forest floor and wet river bed, which give way to a hint of cherry pie on the finish.

This vintage delivers nice, strong acidity, that enlivens the mouth and gives this wine excellent ageability. No detectable tannins provide a smooth, elegant finish that lingers softly.” (AbV 14.5%, pH 3.6, TA 5.7 g/L)

VARIETALS: 100% Pinot Noir

BARRELS: 12 months in neutral French oak.

PAIRS WITH: Cheeses like brie, gouda, gruyere, and chèvre. Meats such as duck, lamb, and chicken. Eggplant parmesan, mushroom risotto, and a tomato-based vegetable stew. Milk chocolate, and fruit or nut-based desserts.

THAT REMINDS ME OF: Elkhorn coral.

There are, or have been, many kinds of coral out there in the ocean. As weird and inanimate as they seem, they are indeed animals. Elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata, is one of the core species making up coral reefs in the Caribbean. It gets the name from the horn-like calcium carbonate growths. Not exactly the most colorful coral, they typically are somewhere between brown and yellow.

Fascinatingly, corals like Elkhorn primarily receive their nutrients from algae that live not just on the coral or in its crevices, but literally inside its cells. This algae photosynthesizes sugar and oxygen directly inside the coral, which in turn can use them to grow and sustain itself.

Unfortunately, Elkhorn, like, many corals, has been in a Threatened status for the past several decades. Here’s hoping conservation efforts succeed.

ICYMI, you have two choices:

Worried Summer heat might get to your wine before your wine gets to you? Order from the sale linked here, and we’ll get it to you at a cooler time of year!
Want it ASAP, don’t think heat will be a problem? Order from this sale, the page you’re on right now! We’ll still try to get them to you with as little travel time as we can.

Elkhorn Peak Cellars Pinot Noir

Worried the Summer heat will get to your wine before it gets to you? Try our new Summer Hold option here!

90 pts (Wine Enthusiast, Sommelier Challenge)

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