2023 Swirling Hawk, Pinot Noir, Reserve, Estate Grown, Monterey County.
The dark ruby hued 2023 Swirling Hawk Reserve Pinot Noir is an exciting and distinctive limited bottling which saw just the heritage clones with 2/3rds Pommard and 1/3rd Swan, which brings out a different character of the vineyard with a more structured mouth feel and a fine delicate earthiness. The firm, ripe and youthful medium bodied palate of this bright Reserve Pinot shows vibrant raspberry, strawberry and currant, as well as a core of black cherry, along with sassafras, vanilla, a hint of truffle, orange tea, chalky stone and floral tones. This wine is opulent in texture, but with some grip and looks to evolve slowly and enjoy extended cellaring. The long growing season here, just about 7 miles from the Carmel Bay, allows for intense flavors and fruit density and we bring in the ripe and healthy grapes into the mid of October and they are careful sorted in the vineyard and on the sorting table. The clusters are full de-stemmed and gently crushed and put into temperature controlled open top stainless fermenters for a two week maceration and primary fermentation using selected cultures. After a small basket pressing the wine is racked to French oak barrels, where it finished malolactic fermentation with about 40% new wood, and rest being neutral wood, and it saw about 10 months of elevage, on the fine lees, without racking, before bottling. There’s also an estate Chardonnay, the Estate Pinot and this special barrel selection Reserve Pinot available now at the Arizini family’s Swirling Hawk, that are now just direct to their mailing list, which is up on their website.
David and Marieke Arizini, as I noted in my review of their ’22 Pinot, founded the Swirling Hawk property and vineyard just a few vintages ago, it is an all new small boutique winery located in the heart of Carmel Valley, just off the Los Laureles Grade and close to the famous Diamond-T Vineyard, and not far from Albatross Ridge and Pelio, in what has become an area known as the Carmel Coast. It’s an area a few miles from the original Carmel Valley AVA and sees much more cooling influence, it is also trying to become an AVA sub region of its own, and different from the deeper end of Carmel Valley in Monterey County. Perched on the hills overlooking Carmel Valley, Swirling Hawk Vineyards, only 7 or 8 miles from Carmel Bay and cool Pacific, captures the elements of nature in every vine. Each day, as inland heat rises, hawks swirl on the thermals that help ripen our Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes. Ocean fog cools the vines at night enhancing their quality. Clay-loam soil and deep shale beds, distinctive to the region, add complexity to our signature style. As mentioned I got turned on to this exciting new label by Frank Melicia, who as mentioned farms and makes the wine here, and who’s wines I’ve long admired, be it from Silvestri, where I love the Barbera, or Parsonage, known for some of Carmel Valley’s deepest reds, including Syrah, Petit Verdot, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, which have long been favorites of mine, so I’m excited to se the evolution here. Frank started here with this 2022 vintage and says there’s great potential and thinks his 2023 will turn some heads when it gets to bottle this fall, and he was right!
($75 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive