Winemaker Description
The Pinot Noir Estate is always the best place to start when evaluating our success or shortcoming in any given vintage. It incorporates nearly all their estate vineyard in various amounts, and as such provides an honest evaluation of the year. The 2021 Estate Pinot Noir reflects the multifaceted nature of the vintage: the abundance of fruit from their early picks under sunny skies and the earthen
complexity we found from our older vines picked in cooler October weather. Blending the Estate is often their most difficult task because it is our largest bottling each vintage, and thus includes both our successes and shortcomings. Thanks to diligent farming from our vineyard team, attention to detail, and a fantastic winemaking team for harvest, the 2021 Estate Pinot Noir contains only successes.
Expert Reviews
Audrey Frick writes: The 2021 Pinot Noir Estate pours a jeweled ruby and has aromas of kirsch, forest herbs, and crushed flowers. Lush and approachable, with generous fruit up front, and silky in its rounded mouthfeel, its full-bodied frame is light on its feet, with lovely purity. Drink it over the next 4-6 years. It’s a killer value. Drinking 2023 - 2029. - Jeb Dunnuck 92
Eric Guido writes: Classic to the core, the 2021 Pinot Noir Estate lifts from the glass with a pretty blend of rosemary and sage, complementing crushed wild berries. This balances savory and sweet with a pure blend of sour red berries offset by sour citrus hints and saline minerals, which add grip toward the close. This finishes with medium length and youthful tension, leaving a lingering tart cranberry crunch. Drinking 2024 - 2030. - Vinous 92
Jancis Robinson writes: Transparent crimson. Toasty, comforting nose. Attractive ripe Pinot nose with real zip and freshness. Great balance. Good length. Smooth texture. Drinking 2024 - 2031. - Jancis Robinson 17
Clive Pursehouse writes: Refined and dark-fruited, this wine is a blend across the estate, an effort to capture the terroir and signature of Bethel Heights. Aromas of smoky flint, crushed rose petals, and clove announces a dark and somewhat brooding palate. Ripe Italian plums, blackberry and crushed basalt, announce a palate with ample structure and stony mineral-driven finish. Drinking 2023 - 2030. - Decanter 93
Erin Brooks writes: Matured in 25% new oak, the 2021 Pinot Noir Estate has a medium ruby-purple color and scents of blueberries, cranberries, woodsmoke, pipe tobacco and burnt orange peel. The light-bodied palate is austere with mineral-driven fruit, bright acidity, chalky tannins and a slight bitterness on the finish. There's a rusticity to this wine that's unusual for Bethel Heights. Drinking 2023 - 2028. - Robert Parker Wine Advocate 92
James Suckling writes: Aromas of redcurrants and cherry drops with citrus rind, lilac and crushed stones. Medium-bodied, fresh and crunchy, with chalky tannins and vivid acidity. Bright, blue-fruited finish. A little chewy at the end. Drink or hold. - James Suckling 93
Tim Fish writes: Sleek and handsomely structured, with expressive raspberry and red plum flavors laced with black tea, forest floor and hints of mineral, building tension toward medium-grained tannins. Drink now through 2031. - Wine Spectator 93
