Eyrie vinifies its Pinot cuvées identically in an effort to showcase site. They use ambient yeast, small fermentation vessels, and aging in a very modest amount of new oak.
Daphne is their highest-elevation Pinot site, planted to Pommard clone in 1974. These stony soils sit at 800 feet of elevation. This bottling is tomato-y, with piquant red fruits and a hint of lavender. The palate has sharp acidity, more strident than the other Pinots; it presents as Mandarin orange (spicy), both fruit and peel. Where Roland Green has black fruits, Daphne’s is fire-engine red. There is a thread of dried herbs and potpourri, rose, hibiscus, pomander. The finish, though, is curiously smooth, finishing in a whisper.
2016 Eyrie Vineyards Pinot Noir Daphne Dundee Hills
13% ABV | $80 (sample)
