2021 Kutch, Mindego Vineyard Pinot Noir, Santa Cruz Mountains, California, USA

Pinot Noir is probably the most frustrating, and at times infuriating, wine grape in the world. However when it is successful, it can produce some of the most sublime wines known to man. This thin-skinned grape which grows in small, tight bunches performs well on well-drained, deepish limestone based subsoils as are found on Burgundy's Côte d'Or. Pinot Noir is more susceptible than other varieties to over cropping - concentration and varietal character disappear rapidly if yields are excessive and yields as little as 25hl/ha are the norm for some climats of the Côte d`Or.

The Santa Cruz Mountains, a wine region in Northern California spanning Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, and San Mateo counties, is renowned for its high-quality, cool-climate wines. Influenced by the Pacific Ocean, the diverse microclimate favours the cultivation of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and other varietals like Cabernet Sauvignon.

Kutch is a Sonoma based winery, specialising in the cooler areas of California, they produce remarkably well-made expressions of both Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Headed by the enigmatic Jamie Kutch, the ex-Wall Street trader got bitten by the wine bug while hosting a dinner party with several friends, one of whom bought a bottle of Kosta Browne’s Pinot Noir. This bottle sparked something deep within Jamie, and he soon found himself flying out to San Francisco to immerse himself in the US wine trade. By day, still working as a trader, but on weekends, he would head to the vineyards and absorb all he could about the intricacies of making fine wine. Suffice it to say, the day job only lasted about six months, and he soon found himself taking charge of a new project, under his own name, Kutch.