KUTCH PINOT NOIR MCDOUGALL RANCH 2020

Dried cranberry, iron-tinged earth, and forest floor lead the palate, followed by red cherry and a long, tightly wound finish with fine-grained tannins. McDougall Ranch sits high on the Sonoma Coast, close enough to the Pacific that marine influence keeps temperatures cool throughout the growing season — conditions that reward slow ripening and bright acidity in Pinot Noir. The vineyard was planted in 1997 on steep mountain terrain, and Jamie Kutch farms it with focused attention to site. Fermentation is traditional for the appellation, and the result carries real structural tension.