2021 Pinot Clair

Domaine Carneros Pinot Clair is a white wine made from the black skinned Pinot Noir grape. We start by picking grapes at a maturity level that is greater than those used for sparkling wines, but not as high as those destined for still pinot noir. Night picking is a critical step so we can press the grapes early in the morning while they are still cool. A gentle pressing allows us to extract about 90-95 gallons of juice per ton of grapes before the pigments start to bleed out from the skins. This year’s edition features 65% Pommard clone combined with 35% Martini selection. The juice components were fermented primarily in neutral oak, with the notable addition of a concrete egg tank. A modest amount, one-third, of new water-bent French oak was employed to lift the spice. In total, the wine spent 14 months resting on the lees (sur lie) and 6 months aging in bottle.