2022 Pisoni Vineyard Pinot Noir
Santa Lucia Highlands AVA
Tasting Notes
“Very dark red hue. Enchanting scents of ripe cherry, cola, sage, ripe cranberry, and chokecherry jam. With some time, notes of marionberry, vanilla cream, and raspberry round out this Pinot Noir. Once on the palate, these qualities persist and flow effortlessly into a plush, expansive and pleasing texture. The enjoyment continues to crescendo on the finish with expansiveness, harmony, and an overall amazing sensory experience. Enjoy now through 2034.”
~Bill Brosseau, Director of Winemaking
April 2024
“Opens with a bouquet of black cherry, black raspberry, and a hint of toasty oak. Beautifully balanced and full in the mouth with bright fresh fruit and moderate tannins. Very long finish. A beautiful wine. This vineyard, established in 1982 by Gary Pisoni, consists of 45 acres and is situated in the rolling foothills of the Santa Lucia Mountains at about 1,300 ft. above the Salinas Valley. It is composed of several small vineyard blocks, each with a unique soil type and microclimate. The property sits at the southern end of the SLH at a considerably higher altitude than the majority of vineyards in the AVA. Its mountainous terrain, consisting of well-drained alluvial fans of very thin decomposed granite soil, stresses the vines, producing grapes of intense character. Matured 19 months in 57% new French oak. 14.3% alc.” Don Winkler, International Wine Review, June 2024
“The 2022 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard hails from two blocks on the estate, including one planted in 1997. It’s a serious wine, at once muscular and chiseled but also agile and finessed. This lauded site yielded insane depth and concentration in 2022, benefitting from the warm season in its generous proportions and immediacy. Layer after layer of dark-toned berry fruit, exotic spice, wild herbs and the finest tannins develop in the glass. The finish goes on for days. The 2022 Pisoni has a long life ahead. Brilliant.” Billy Norris, Antonio Galloni’s Vinous, August 2024
Production Data
Growers: Pisoni Family
Winemaker: Bill Brosseau
Appellation: Santa Lucia Highlands AVA
Elevation/Exposure: 1,200 feet; Southeast
Soil: Decomposed granite and clay
Vineyard Age: 40 years, some re-plantings 30 years
Viticulture Practice: Sustainable (SIP Certified)
Vinification: Destemmed, fermented in Stainless steel
Cooperage & Ageing: 19 months in French oak, 57% new
Production: 10 barrels
Composition: 100% Pinot Noir (Pisoni clone)
Acidity: 3.34 pH, 7.16 TA (g/L)
Alcohol: 14.3%
Harvest: September 9, 2022, hand harvested
Club Release: May 2024
Release Price: $96
Drink Now through 2034
Past Vintage Wine Scores
“The 2021 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard is a fairly savory, earthy wine for a site that tends to show the more potent side of the Santa Lucia Highlands. Dried herbs, flowers, cedar, tobacco and licorice are pushed forward while the primary fruit rests in the background. The Pisoni is a fine choice for readers who enjoy powerful, savory California Pinots, even if it goes somewhat against the archetype of this site. The long, sustained finish is quite striking.”
Antonio Galloni
Vinous
November 2023
“Pale to medium ruby-purple in color, the 2021 Pisoni Vineyard Pinot Noir opens with a gorgeous perfume of red roses, kirsch, and fragrant soil followed by a core of redcurrant jelly and cedar. The medium to full-bodied palate is laden with juicy red berry flavors with a light touch of oak and a soft texture, finishing with lovely freshness.”
Lisa Perrotti-Brown, MW
The Wine Independent
February 2024
“A beautifully spicy and well-layered combination of floral notes, red currant as well as exotic tea hints intermingle to create a gorgeous nose. The supple and seductively textured middle weight flavors also possess very good depth on the dusty, balanced and solidly persistent finish. This is also solidly structured though not so much that it couldn’t be enjoyed young. With that said, for my taste, this would go into a cool cellar and not be pulled for at least 7 to 8 years. Excellent potential.”
Allen Meadows
Burghound
April 2024
“There’s nothing subtle about this bold and ripe presentation of this iconic vineyard. Aromas of rich black cherry, mace, cinnamon, loamy soil and dried meat lure the nose in. The palate’s hearty texture frames blackberry, violet and baking spice flavors.”
Matt Kettmann
Wine Enthusiast
December 2023
Wine not produced
“For coming from a site that typically yields notoriously rich wines, this bottling begins with subtle aromas of pomegranate, raspberry, cardamom and nutmeg. The palate is brisk and tightly wound, pairing a judicious use of barrel spice alongside white pepper and pomegranate flavors.”
Matt Kettmann
Wine Enthusiast
December 2021 Issue
“Dark, shimmering red. Spice and mineral-accented raspberry and kirsch scents show superb definition, picking up floral and vanilla nuances with air. In a juicy, energetic style, showing fine clarity and cut to its sweet red fruit, floral pastille, mocha and exotic spice flavors. The spice and floral notes repeat on a strikingly long, vibrant finish that’s given shape by discreet, even tannins.”
Josh Raynolds
Antonio Galloni’s Vinous
May 2022
“Vivid ruby-red. Intense, spice-accented red and blue fruit, potpourri and incense qualities on the assertively perfumed nose, along with cola and woodsmoke flourishes. An undercurrent of minerality supports sappy raspberry, cherry cola and boysenberry flavors that deepen with air while maintaining urgency. The floral note comes back strong on a gently tannic, strikingly long finish that shows sharp definition and resonating spice and cherry notes. 64% new French oak.”
Josh Raynolds
Antonio Galloni’s Vinous
October 2020
“From one of California’s most celebrated vineyards; lush cherry nose, juicy and exuberant with tangy, ripe fruit, smooth texture and pure, long-lasting flavors, stunning.”
Anthony Dias Blue
September 2020
“Testarossa’s Niclaire bottling earns its spurs for its marvelous marriage of refinement and fruity precision, but the 2017 Pisoni Pinot Noir shares top honors by dint of its show-stopping concentration and depth. It is a dense, very fullscaled effort of uncompromising richness that holds nothing back and boasts an absolute wealth of authoritative cherry and plum fruit that never relents. Although it is a wine of considerable staying power and unquestionable future promise, it, too, is so out-and-out delicious that a good deal of self-discipline will be required in setting it aside for the five or six years of cellaring that it commends. ”
Connoisseurs’ Guide to California Wine
November 2019
“Lush, rich and juicy with smooth cherry fruit; deep, balanced and long.”
Anthony Dias Blue
July 2019
“Brilliant ruby. Intensely perfumed aromas of red and blue fruit liqueur, spicecake, smoky minerals and incense, with hints of cola and vanilla in the background. Densely packed and alluringly sweet, showing excellent depth and a smoky mineral accent to the sappy red and dark berry and cherry-vanilla flavors. Gains breadth and energy on the impressively long finish, where gentle tannins build slowly and fold into the wine’s juicy, expressive fruit.”
Josh Raynolds
Antonio Galloni Vinous
“Bright ruby. A complex, highly perfumed bouquet displays aromas of fresh black raspberry, incense and cola, and a sexy floral nuance gains strength as the wine stretches out. Sweet, round and seamless in the mouth, showing impressive heft as well as energy. Strongly echoes the floral note on a gently tannic finish that lingers with serious, intensely fruit-driven tenacity.”
Josh Raynolds
Antonio Galloni Vinous
November 2017
The Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard offers lovely fresh aromas of pure red cherry and raspberry fruit. On the palate it exhibits a soft and silky texture, delicious red berry fruit flavors, round tannins and a long and luscious finish. The Pisoni Vineyard is among the finest low yielding vineyards in the SLH if not all of California for growing Pinot Noir. Meticulously managed too.
International Wine Review
“While I was disappointed with a lot of Pisoni Vineyard releases last year (that site didn’t do well in 2012 for some reason), the 2013s from the vineyard are superb. The 2013 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard from Testarossa is a great example of this and offers a crystalline, elegant, chiseled feel to go with pretty cassis, raspberry, crushed rock and violets. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and lengthy, it’s a great Pinot Noir that will have a decade or more of overall longevity.”
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
“Coming from the southern end of the Santa Lucia Highlands and decomposed Granite soils, the 2012 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard was completely destemmed and spent 17.5 months in 67% new French oak. Giving up plenty of sweet oak in its black fruits, rosemary, leather and hints of chocolate, this beauty is medium to full-bodied, nicely concentrated and structured. Give it a year and enjoy bottles through 2022.”
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
“A step up on the richness scale, the 2011 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard displays the richness and depth of the terroir nicely. Loaded with crushed berry fruit, wild herb, underbrush and forest floor nuances, this medium to full-bodied, seamless and lively effort has a core of sweet fruit and beautiful length through the finish. It should have 4-6 years of prime drinking, if not more. Drink now-2019.”
Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
August 2013
The Pisoni Vineyard
The Pisoni Vineyard is one of the most special and sought after vineyards in the country. It has been called the closest vineyard to a Grand Cru in the new world by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. It was first planted by Gary Pisoni in 1982 and it is one of the highest vineyards in the Santa Lucia Highlands at 1300 feet. It is 35 acres consisting of small vineyard blocks along the ridge and mountainous landscape of the Santa Lucia Mountain Range. The soil is clay laced with decomposed granite and bears a southeastern exposure. But it is more than the location that makes Pisoni a special place. Gary and his son Mark are obsessive about low yields and meticulous about vineyard management. They have year round long-term employees who care for each and every vine by hand. Every decision in the vineyard implements sustainable farming practices and long-term considerations. Testarossa is proud to have been partnering with the Pisoni Family since 1997.
Past Vintages
Wine Production Data
Learn more about Pisoni Vineyard:
“Farming for the Future. Sustainability at Pisoni Vineyards”