Peay Vineyards Pinot Noir 2022
(West Sonoma Coast, California) - [DM 97] [JD 94] [VM 92]

About the Winery:
Peay Vineyards sits on a ridge above a river gorge in the northwestern corner of the “true” Sonoma Coast, 4 miles from the chilly Pacific Ocean. A consistent afternoon ocean wind, their location in the cool inversion layer, and ancient marine soils allow them to produce wines of elegance, intensity, and focus.
Peay Vineyards is a first generation family winery started in 1996. Husband and wife, Nick Peay and Vanessa Wong, grow and make the wine and Nick’s brother, Andy Peay, sells the wine and runs the business. Vanessa Wong was formerly the winemaker at Peter Michael Winery. They planted the first 30 acres of the 54 acre vineyard in 1998 with the remaining planted in 2001 and 2008. 2002 was their first vintage. They now grow and produce estate-only Pinot Noir, Syrah, Chardonnay, Viognier and Roussanne/Marsanne. They sell fruit to a handful of premier wineries, but the majority of their fruit goes into their own bottlings.
The Peay family farms organically and maintains their certifications for fish-friendly farming and integrated pest management. Taking sustainability one step further, they also run on bio-diesel at the vineyard and solar power at both the vineyard and winery.

About the Wine:
This blend has emerged as the signature Pinot Noir from our estate vineyard incorporating most of the clones and blocks we grow. In a vintage like 2023, this has everything you could hope for from a Peay Pinot Noir; elegance, complexity, depth of flavor, bright aromatics, approachability.
This blend has emerged as the signature Pinot Noir from our estate vineyard incorporating most of the clones and blocks we grow. In a vintage like 2023, this has everything you could hope for from a Peay Pinot Noir; elegance, complexity, depth of flavor, bright aromatics, approachability. The nose displays a balance of fruit, floral, and earth aromas featuring orange peel, pomegranate, cherry pipe tobacco, and underbrush aromas. The mouthfeel is bright but not nervy with a long finish and great depth of flavor. I tasted it next to a bottle I had tasted from Coravin 3 weeks previously. It was interesting to see how the wine in the second bottle had filled out in the mid-palate and was more mouth-filling while staying lifted. Makes me think you should decant to let breathe a little when drinking it now.