13.5% ABV
Pinot Noir
Sonoma Coast
In 1989, vintners Joan and Walt Flowers left their nursery in Pennsylvania for the wilds of the Sonoma Coast with a singular goal: to make wine that met the beauty they had found along the ridges high above the Pacific coast. The Easterners, Walt a Philadelphia native, Joan from Pittsburgh, were wine lovers since they were courting in 1980. She had gifted Walt a 120-bottle wine refrigeration unit after a visit to California wine country in 1982, and soon after, they chased a wine dream by purchasing 321 California acres, including space on a mountain top, in the late 80s.
They began by selling grapes to a local vintner, and by 1994 they’d opened their own winery and their holdings expanded to 648 acres. The Flowers planted vines on elevated sites, designating one mainly for chardonnay and another, closer to the water, for pinot noir. The plaudits flowed like…wine. The Flowers were recognized as pioneers in the growing of both pinot noir and chardonnay on the ridged coast of Sonoma.
The Flowers planted their pinot noir vines in 1998 on their Sea View Ridge Vineyard, 43 acres above the foggy marine layer of the Pacific coastline.
In 2009, Huneeus Vintners, toting experience and the spirit of youth, purchased an interest in the Flowers’ vineyard and a partnership blossomed. The deal, for an undisclosed amount, also allowed the Flowers to spend more time in their retirement home of – where else? – Florida, while keeping part-time ownership of their winery.
They’d bought a place in Sarasota in 2004, with Walt telling the local newspaper that he’d had little time to play golf since entering the wine business. That dilemma was solved by the deal with Huneeus.
“We’re finally going to pick up a golf club,” Walt Flowers told Wine Spectator magazine shortly after the purchase was completed, adding, “we didn’t want to sell and walk away.”
Pairing by: Erik Calviño
Tasting Notes: Flowers Sea View Ridge Pinot Noir 2021
Opens with an opulent nose of ripe strawberries and soft baking spices. The wine pours into a pale ruby color in the glass and delivers a beautifully balanced and complex combination of fruit and acidity highlighted by sweet and tart notes of strawberry, cranberry, and dark cherry accompanied by oak, spice, and iron. The tannins are fine and pleasing to the palate.
Cigar Pairing: Rocky Patel White Label
Both the Rocky Patel White Label and the Flowers Sea View Ridge Pinot Noir are amazingly flexible for pairings but this specific combination is a match made in pinot noir heaven. The Rocky Patel is incredibly receptive to the wine’s red fruits, adding a delicious touch of fruity sweetness to the smoke that feels natural. The cigar’s blend of earth, smooth pepper, and vanilla adds a dimension to the wine that makes it even more complex and delicious.
Plus One: Black Cordon Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon
David Dunphy first visited Napa Valley in 1978, spurred by the Judgement of Paris. With wife Karen, he emigrated from Minnesota and released their first vintage in 2007, working with Paul Hobbs and Julian Gonzalez. Their Black Cordon Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon grapes come from their four mountain vineyards. The wine is aged for two years, then selected and blended by Hobbs and Gonzalez.
