94pts James Suckling

Beautifully ripe strawberry, bark and pine needle aromas with dried flowers. Dried tea, too. Orange peel. Medium to full body. Plenty of soft tannins. Earth. Granite. Pumice. Plenty of flavor. Very structured. Broad spine. Drink after 2026.

92pts Wine Spectator 

Offers gently mulled mulberry and blackberry fruit that hold center stage, with nice briary energy running underneath. Shows a light kiss of toast and anise on the finish, as the fruit lingers steadily. Drink now through 2028. 12,770 cases made.

92pts Wine Enthusiast

Handsome black cherry and black tea flavors ride a good structure of moderate tannins in this concentrated, deep and complex-tasting wine. Accents of rose petals, cloves and redwood forest make it interesting to sip and savor.

Winemaker Notes

This garnet-colored gem of a Pinot Noir is youthful and vibrant. Boisterous red berry fruit aromas are mimicked on the palate with flavors of red raspberry, Bing cherry, pomegranate, pink peppercorn, and a hint of floral potpourri, supported by earthier notes of clay and leather. The mouthfeel is bright and lively with linear tannins. The wine finishes long and supple with hints of caramel and spiced clove, a signature characteristic of Grace Benoist Ranch Pinot Noir. Ethereal and soft with a fresh core of acidity, it pairs beautifully with a variety of cuisines and culinary dishes.

Vineyard Notes

The Etude Carneros Pinot Noir hails from our estate vineyards tucked away in the far Northwest corner of the Carneros appellation, just on the Southwest corner of Sonoma. Unlike most of Carneros, which is largely uplifted bay bottoms with soils composed of clay, the soils at Grace Benoist Ranch are variations of soils influenced by volcanic origin. Combining these well-drained, rocky upland soils with the extreme western location closer to the Pacific Ocean and San Pablo Bay make this site an ideal place to grow Burgundian varieties. The vineyard parcels at Grace Benoist Ranch conform to the various soil types and the changing contours of the Ranch topography. Individual vineyards average only eight acres in size and spacing is dense to ensure low per vine yields of fully concentrated fruit.

Grace Benoist Ranch is farmed to Etude’s exacting standards, using environmentally sound viticultural practices. The Ranch is sustainably farmed and certified by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance as well as Fish Friendly Farming. At the Ranch, there are four smaller vineyards (Laniger, Deer Camp, Temblor and Heirloom) with five principal unique soil types and 20 distinct Pinot Noir clones.

Sustainable