2021 Clarice Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands
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Tasting notes
Starting with the 2021 Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands, this beauty shines for its purity and elegance, offering a beautiful perfume of ripe raspberries, redcurrants, sassafras, and minty herbs. It's medium-bodied and slightly mid-weight, with a lively, elegant mouthfeel, supple tannins, and a vibrant spine of acidity. This medium-bodied, pretty, Burgundian styled effort will evolve for a decade.
Critic scores
Average Score
Jancis Robinson MW
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
The 2021 Pinot Noir (Santa Lucia Highlands) is bright, nervy and beautifully focused. Crushed rose petals, mint, sage, dried herbs and anise are finely delineated in this classy, mid-weight offering from Adam Lee. The 2021 could use another 6-12 months to soften.
69.2% whole-cluster fermentation with no additions of any kind, save sulphur dioxide. A blend of fruit from Rosella's and Garys' Vineyard. Aged in 37.5% new French oak. Bottled unfined and unfiltered. Closed with a screwcap. Darker garnet. Smells of cherries, green herbs and dried flowers. Fine-grained, muscular tannins wrap around a core of cherry, raspberry and dried, aromatic herbs. Excellent acidity gives the wine a brisk freshness, even as the herbal qualities add a mintiness to the finish, demonstrating the substantial portion of whole-cluster fermentation. (AY)
The 2021 Pinot Noir (Santa Lucia Highlands), the product of a slightly warmer vintage than the 2023 tasted alongside, delivers a rich core of dark, spiced fruit. Broad and textural, it’s still a young, tannic wine. Floral tones linger on the finish, but it’s a little tight today. Still, very attractive, and more in line with Adam Lee’s typical style.