2019 Scott Family Estate Dijon Clone Pinot Noir, Arroyo Secco, Monterey
Tasting Notes
A soft and decadent 100% Pinot Noir with aromas and flavors of cherry, sage, ripe raspberries, and earthy notes. Richly textured and medium-bodied with balanced acidity creating a smooth, lingering finish. Enjoy this elegant Pinot Noir now or save for up to seven years.
Harvest & The Vineyards
Arroyo Seco (“Dry Creek”), a sub-appellation of the Monterey AVA, enjoys a cool climate, producing an extended growing season (often 2 to 4 weeks longer than Napa Valley). This additional hang time allows for greater fruit ripening and brighter acidity. The Estate’s vineyards, inland from Big Sur, have deep, gravelly soils, ideal for opulent Pinot Noir cultivation. This unique combination of soil and climate produces relatively small berries with intense, concentrated flavors.
The 2019 growing season in Arroyo Seco was picture perfect with long, cool mornings that gave way to mild afternoon sunshine with a daily breeze coming from the Monterey Bay that allowed for extended hang time and flavor development and intensity of the fruit.
Food Recommendations
Pair our Scott Family Estate Pinot Noir with hearty and richly flavored dishes like paté, or a portabello burger.
Specs
Varietal Blend: 100% Pinot Noir
Aging: 10 months in French and American oak
TA: 0.56 (g/100mL)
pH: 3.82
Alcohol: 14.5%
Aging Potential: 5 - 7 years
What’s Included
4-bottles:
4x 2019 Scott Family Estate Dijon Clone Pinot Noir, Arroyo Secco, Monterey
Case:
12x 2019 Scott Family Estate Dijon Clone Pinot Noir, Arroyo Secco, Monterey
Scott Family Estate “terroir-inspired” wines are crafted to express the best of regions and vineyards ideally suited to cultivating cold-loving Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes.
Meticulous selection of sites with distinctive soil types and clonal varieties in Arroyo Seco (Monterey County) and Carneros (Napa Valley) results in fruit with uniquely nuanced flavors and varietal characteristics. These limited-production, ultra-premium wines are produced using small scale eco-friendly farming methods.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
2019 Scott Family Estate Pinot Noir - $15 = 7.68%
My wife and I had the privilege of tasting the 2019 Scott Family Vineyard Pinot Noir.
The initial aromas were much like I expected from a pinot: bright fruits with a cherry Jolly Rancher quality, reminding me of raspberries being cooked down for cake filling. My wife noted a hint of leather. The wine is light-bodied with a watery meniscus and surprisingly supple and clingy legs.
The wine is not designed to be a simple juice with a generic profile. The cherry aroma is a bright, zingy berry, with sharper notes of tart cherry and cranberry. These hit with a ping. There is a fair amount of acidity; shortly after these initial flavors hit, both sides of the tongue burn with it, and it lingers with the finish. Interestingly, these are balanced with some vanilla and very silky fine-grained tannins with some slightly earthy notes. In the early tasting, the finish was harsh with what my childhood memories associate with Robitussin. After an hour and also on day two, the acid and some of the tartness were a bit muted, but not to an incredible degree.
We paired this with thin slices of Manchego cheese, which was a solid match. The pinot drew a nuttiness out of this creamy cheese. This wine would probably do better with meal pairings than as a solo sipper.
@ejrunion Your photo really captures the lightness of the wine. It was different than any I’ve seen. Honestly, given how pale it was, I was surprised how fully flavored it was. These guys really have their style dialed in. Interesting how similar our comments are; it almost looked like we copied each other (save for your silky fine-grained tannins note.)
Scott Family Estate Pinot Noir 2019
Arroyo Seco | Monterey | Dijon Clone
Haven’t had many wine deliveries recently, so it was a happy surprise* to have a single bottle show up on top of my case of Onesta Cinsault. The bottle is slope-shouldered and elegant with an average punt. The natural cork had minimal staining, it was a sort of pinkish-purple (periwinkle?) The wine is noticeably light in the glass, almost like a rose. It is a pale burgundy with ruby glints that glow when held up to the light. On pop and pour, the first whiff is all raspberry, but after some swirling I noticed some barnyard and spice. Given my first impression of the nose, I had to keep going back to confirm the “wilder” elements. Medium-light body, fruit up front followed by layer upon layer of dried fruit, spice, touch of tropical fruit. I typically taste a mix of flavors that I have difficulty disentangling. This wine seems to have a catalog of flavors that it presents briefly one at a time, like Vine videos. This wine is somewhat lean, with a refreshing acid backbone. It is very elegant, fruit forward but not fruity.
After an hour in the glass, it tastes both fresh and mature, wonderfully balanced yet worthy of contemplation. No perceptible oak or tannin were present at the beginning, and none have shown up as the wine unwinds in my glass. Well structured, well made, balanced yet undemanding, a wine for any occasion or no occasion at all. Thank to Alice & WCC for making this tasting possible, to the Scott Family for crafting a wine worth writing home about, and the boys in Brown for continuing to deliver. Salut!
*Note that Alice did email me before the Labrat bottle shipped, I just didn’t expect it to be sitting on top of the Onesta case.
@KitMarlot I would agree that our reviews dovetail nicely! I especially loved the way you said, “This wine is somewhat lean, with a refreshing acid backbone. It is very elegant, fruit forward but not fruity.” That was phased much more elegantly than I did! Happy Thanksgiving!
Hi guys! Russ from the winery here. Thanks for your feedback. Arroyo Seco area does produce those bright fruit notes with the acidity to aid in the finish. What I enjoy with this vintage is the earthiness. It went with a pork loin with cranberries the other night. Cheers!
Hi Everybody, I’m Marc, the Winemaker for Scott Family Estates. Thank you all for the interest in this wine.
My goal is to make Pinot Noir that is true to the varietal character of the grape and Arroyo Seco is great location to do that. It’s cool, breezy days allow for long hang times and later harvest which bring a really nice concentration to the flavors.
My wife and I love to pair this Pinot with grilled salmon. It would also go perfectly with turkey and other traditional thanksgiving dishes!
Please let me know if you have any questions about the wine you would like answered.
@tercerowines Hey, on the bottle they say “Dijon Clone” (which is pretty cool!) so I’m guessing you are asking for more specificity, Larry. Could you educate non-winemakers like myself on the differences? Always love to learn!
@KitMarlot there are numerous different clones that are considered ‘Dijon’ clones. The first ones are 113, 114 and 115, and each exhibits different flavors, etc . . . Hope that helps!
@tercerowines I don’t have exact percentage in front of me. 667 and 777 would be vast majority and split evenly. Just a few percentage points of 115. That’s how vineyard is split.
@marczaccaria@tercerowines I love it that the winery is so much a part of the boards and that another wine maker is asking questions. Both increase the transparency of the offering and the validity of plebian reviewers like myself! Happy Thanksgiving!
2019 Scott Family Estate Dijon Clone Pinot Noir, Arroyo Secco, Monterey
Tasting Notes
Harvest & The Vineyards
Food Recommendations
Specs
What’s Included
4-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
$540.00/Case for 12x 2021 Scott Family Estate Dijon Clone Pinot Noir, Arroyo Secco, Monterey at Rutherford Ranch (2019 not online)
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NM, NY, NC, ND, OH, OR, PA, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Dec 12 - Thursday, Dec 15
2019 Scott Family Estate Pinot Noir
4 bottles for $64.99 $16.25/bottle + $2/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $179.99 $15/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: tax and shipping are not included in savings calculations).
2019 Scott Family Estate Pinot Noir - $15 = 7.68%
The initial aromas were much like I expected from a pinot: bright fruits with a cherry Jolly Rancher quality, reminding me of raspberries being cooked down for cake filling. My wife noted a hint of leather. The wine is light-bodied with a watery meniscus and surprisingly supple and clingy legs.
The wine is not designed to be a simple juice with a generic profile. The cherry aroma is a bright, zingy berry, with sharper notes of tart cherry and cranberry. These hit with a ping. There is a fair amount of acidity; shortly after these initial flavors hit, both sides of the tongue burn with it, and it lingers with the finish. Interestingly, these are balanced with some vanilla and very silky fine-grained tannins with some slightly earthy notes. In the early tasting, the finish was harsh with what my childhood memories associate with Robitussin. After an hour and also on day two, the acid and some of the tartness were a bit muted, but not to an incredible degree.
We paired this with thin slices of Manchego cheese, which was a solid match. The pinot drew a nuttiness out of this creamy cheese. This wine would probably do better with meal pairings than as a solo sipper.
@ejrunion Your photo really captures the lightness of the wine. It was different than any I’ve seen. Honestly, given how pale it was, I was surprised how fully flavored it was. These guys really have their style dialed in. Interesting how similar our comments are; it almost looked like we copied each other (save for your silky fine-grained tannins note.)
Scott Family Estate Pinot Noir 2019
Arroyo Seco | Monterey | Dijon Clone
Haven’t had many wine deliveries recently, so it was a happy surprise* to have a single bottle show up on top of my case of Onesta Cinsault. The bottle is slope-shouldered and elegant with an average punt. The natural cork had minimal staining, it was a sort of pinkish-purple (periwinkle?) The wine is noticeably light in the glass, almost like a rose. It is a pale burgundy with ruby glints that glow when held up to the light. On pop and pour, the first whiff is all raspberry, but after some swirling I noticed some barnyard and spice. Given my first impression of the nose, I had to keep going back to confirm the “wilder” elements. Medium-light body, fruit up front followed by layer upon layer of dried fruit, spice, touch of tropical fruit. I typically taste a mix of flavors that I have difficulty disentangling. This wine seems to have a catalog of flavors that it presents briefly one at a time, like Vine videos. This wine is somewhat lean, with a refreshing acid backbone. It is very elegant, fruit forward but not fruity.
After an hour in the glass, it tastes both fresh and mature, wonderfully balanced yet worthy of contemplation. No perceptible oak or tannin were present at the beginning, and none have shown up as the wine unwinds in my glass. Well structured, well made, balanced yet undemanding, a wine for any occasion or no occasion at all. Thank to Alice & WCC for making this tasting possible, to the Scott Family for crafting a wine worth writing home about, and the boys in Brown for continuing to deliver. Salut!
*Note that Alice did email me before the Labrat bottle shipped, I just didn’t expect it to be sitting on top of the Onesta case.
@KitMarlot I would agree that our reviews dovetail nicely! I especially loved the way you said, “This wine is somewhat lean, with a refreshing acid backbone. It is very elegant, fruit forward but not fruity.” That was phased much more elegantly than I did! Happy Thanksgiving!
Hi guys! Russ from the winery here. Thanks for your feedback. Arroyo Seco area does produce those bright fruit notes with the acidity to aid in the finish. What I enjoy with this vintage is the earthiness. It went with a pork loin with cranberries the other night. Cheers!
Hi Everybody, I’m Marc, the Winemaker for Scott Family Estates. Thank you all for the interest in this wine.
My goal is to make Pinot Noir that is true to the varietal character of the grape and Arroyo Seco is great location to do that. It’s cool, breezy days allow for long hang times and later harvest which bring a really nice concentration to the flavors.
My wife and I love to pair this Pinot with grilled salmon. It would also go perfectly with turkey and other traditional thanksgiving dishes!
Please let me know if you have any questions about the wine you would like answered.
@marczaccaria thanks for jumping in Marc!
Why not?? In for four!
@karenhynes Awesome, enjoy!
VAN GOGH! MANGO! TANGO! AWESOME!
Anyone interested in a SoCal split?
@rjquillin count me in, sounds interesting. I couldn’t do a whole case but depending if others join, im okay with 4-6 bottles.
@i8dacat important-young-base
still looking for a third, doesn’t need to be equal splitz.
Which specific clones are used in this wine?
@tercerowines Hey, on the bottle they say “Dijon Clone” (which is pretty cool!) so I’m guessing you are asking for more specificity, Larry. Could you educate non-winemakers like myself on the differences? Always love to learn!
@KitMarlot there are numerous different clones that are considered ‘Dijon’ clones. The first ones are 113, 114 and 115, and each exhibits different flavors, etc . . . Hope that helps!
@tercerowines Hi there, thank you for the question. We use a split of 667 and 777 with a bit of 115 as well. Cheers!
@marczaccaria Thank you - that helps. What percentage of each? Cheers.
@tercerowines I don’t have exact percentage in front of me. 667 and 777 would be vast majority and split evenly. Just a few percentage points of 115. That’s how vineyard is split.
@marczaccaria @tercerowines I love it that the winery is so much a part of the boards and that another wine maker is asking questions. Both increase the transparency of the offering and the validity of plebian reviewers like myself! Happy Thanksgiving!
@ejrunion @marczaccaria @tercerowines
Yes, and this is what helps sales, the more we know…
In for a split case.
If anyone from Denver orders I’d be happy to split, 3 - 4 bottles preferably.