Luli Pinot Noir "Lemoravo" 2022
(Santa Lucia Highlands, California)
Regular price $45.00 Sale price $39.99 Save $5.01
12-PACK PRICE = $37.99 per item (add 12+ quantity to your basket)
Luli represents a partnership formed by Sara Floyd and the Pisoni Family. Sara Floyd is a Master Sommelier with many years of food and wine experience. The Pisoni Family is known for their eponymous vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands and for Pisoni Estate and Lucia wines. Deciding they would make a great partnership and noting the shortage of handcrafted wines at reasonable prices, they set out to create a new line of wines for this niche. To achieve this, Floyd and the Pisoni Family focus on purchasing grapes from multiple vineyards in the Santa Lucia Highlands and the greater Monterey County—California coastal regions excellent for growing cool climate grapes.
THE VINEYARD: The Lemoravo Vineyard is set 400 feet in elevation in the southern hills of the Santa Lucia Highlands. The vineyard is planted among the decomposed granite alluvial fans that make up a series of isolated islands amoung the benchlands. This site places the vineyard in rugged soils and heavy fog. As a tribute the this lands history, the name is a three-word portmanteau as a tribute to the regions former crops: Lemons, Oranges and Avocados.
THE WINEMAKING: Luli Pinot Noir is made with classic winemaking techniques: Hand-sorting of the fruit, native yeasts for fermentation and production in small lots. The wine was aged in ‘neutral’ French oak barrels and was not fined or filtered. Each barrel from the Lemoravo Vineyard is hand-selected, with only the best barrels being destined for this wine. The resulting balanced wine is a tribute to this vineyard’s success with Pinot Noir.
TASTING NOTES: A refreshing example of the dynamic terroir and climate within the Santa Lucia Highlands. Deep ruby to its core, this wine slowly unfolds with layered aromas of strawberry crème, fresh cut sage, red cherry, and sandalwood. Staying true to its aromatic profile, flavors of candied Bing cherry, kirsch, black tea, and fresh earth immerse the palate completely. This is a deliciously complex Pinot Noir that finishes with noticeable texture, youthful acidity and soft, silky tannin.
91 Points - Jeb Dunnuck (2021):
"There are two single vineyard releases from Luli, both from the Santa Lucia Highlands. The 2021 Pinot Noir Lemoravo Vineyard comes from the southern end of the appellation and was brought up all in neutral barrels. It's deeper ruby-hued than the appellation release and has a solid bouquet of mulled cherries and red plums intermixed with roasted herbs, loamy earth, leather, and sandalwood. Medium-bodied, round, layered, and silky, this beautiful Pinot Noir should keep for 4-5 years or more." (Sep 2023)