Occidental, Bodega Headlands Vineyard Cuvee Elizabeth Pinot Noir 2020

Description

About the Producer

One of my jobs during the first harvest in 1975 was to drive a Ridge flatbed truck to a small zinfandel vineyard on Harrison Grade, west of Sebastopol, to pick up the zinfandel bins that had been picked that morning. Ridge named this site the "Occidental Vineyard" because it was Ridge's most coastal location. The Occidental Vineyard could be said to be Ridge's most precious zinfandel vineyard, very different from the zinfandels from Geyserville and Lytton Springs that grew in warmer conditions further inland. After working at Ridge for over two years, I developed a distinct preference for the coastal character of the zinfandel from the Occidental Vineyard compared to the other zinfandels in the cellar. In 1998, valuable comparative tastings were made between the coastal pinot noirs made from the Flowers and Hirsch vineyards, the first pinots made from the Taylor Lane and Occidental vineyards, and the Littorai pinot from next door. These tastings were invaluable in guiding the future development of the Occidental vineyards. In 1999, a 100-acre property in Bodega Headlands was purchased. In 2001, 20 acres of pinot noir were planted. In 2008, a 250-acre property adjacent to Bodega Ridge, located on the same ridge overlooking the Pacific, was purchased. In 2011, Occidental, a new Kistler family winery, was founded with a focus on producing world-class pinot noir from the Freestone-Occidental area.