Compton Family Wines
Cellar Select
Pinot Noir 2023
Our Cellar Select label appears when we have a wine that stands apart from the norm. We aged this 2023 vintage Pinot Noir in neutral oak barrels for 2 months (no new oak!) then moved to our concrete egg for an additional 8 months of aging, to make a unique Pinot Noir that’s all about mouthwatering bright red fruit.
WHY THE NAME?
The Compton “Cellar Select” Pinot Noir label appears when we have a unique wine that stands on its own and doesn’t fit in the mold of the usual Pinot Noir labels we make every year. Keep reading for the story behind this new wine.
BACKSTORY:
We ferment our Pinot Noir in small lots, separated by vineyard, clone, sometimes even by row, then put the wine into French Oak barrels of various degrees of toast, new and neutral oak. Different barrels impart different flavors. Winemaker Matt makes the final call on what barrels are blended to create the Compton Pinot Noirs you know and love, like our Llewellyn and Alpine Cuvees. This is determined through sensory evaluation of the wine as it ages a.k.a. barrel tasting.
One hot day back in the summer of 2024, Matt, Tabitha, and Angela were conducting a typical barrel tasting of 2023 Pinot Noirs to be blended and bottled. All three were swirling, smelling, tasting, taking lots of notes, and spitting – don’t forget the spitting. One glass stood out with a rich ruby hue. The nose was divine. The wine filled the palate with mouthwatering red fruit. Tabitha and Angela were immediately taken with this mystery sample. Matt revealed it was Pinot Noir that had been aged in neutral French Oak barrels for 2 months and then moved to the concrete egg for an additional 8 months of aging. Typically, we would blend this with Pinot Noir aged in new oak for balance, but we loved it so much we bottled it as it was.
