97pts The Wine Palate

Deep ruby-purple colored, the 2023 Pinot Noir UV-SL shimmies out of the glass with gregarious notes of pomegranate, black cherries, black raspberries, and wild fungi, followed by hints of orange peel, forest floor, and wild thyme. The medium to full-bodied palate is super-intense and tightly knit, with a racy backbone defining the red berry and earthy layers, finishing with incredible length.

Winemaker Notes

Our most masculine Pinot Noir, the UV-SL, is opulent in color, reflecting a tangible fullness across the palate. The vineyard’s proximity to the ocean is deceptive, as the notably warm climate allows the grapes to reach our optimal ripeness.

Mark Aubert’s Tasting Notes

Inky dark and brooding, the 2023 UV-SL Pinot Noir is potent and arresting in its compositional focus. Deep aromas of blackberry and pomegranate fruits interplay with spicier notes of white pepper, bergamot, and sandalwood. On the palate the wine is chiseled in its structure, with a frame of firm tannin and lingering acidity. This structural seriousness is offset by generous dollops of sweet black cherry and blackberry crumble with mocha and blonde tobacco further building in dramatic crescendo across the palate. Dense and primordial, the 2023 UV-SL Pinot Noir will continue to amplify and gain complexity well beyond a decade of cellaring.

Winery Notes

Nothing better fosters a love and passion for winemaking than growing up on a Napa Valley winery. It inevitably ignites a spark within these few lucky folks but Mark Aubert is one of the few with that passion and the ability to execute it so adeptly. Aubert’s distinguished career began by working with renowned wine maker Helen Turley who also coaches Philippe Melka and Heidi Barrett.

In 1999 Aubert Vineyard was born and has been crafting outstanding vineyard-designate Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs from estate and leased vineyards in the Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast in a full-blown hedonistic style. Stylistically the wines are prefect representations of the terroir from which they grow, especially the Right-Bank approach to his Howell Mountain Bordeaux blend.

Aubert has quickly became one of the most highly sought after wines in California and with a small production of 4,000 cases per annum, they are harder and harder to find and available primarily via the mailing list. Using his experience with some of California's most prestigious producers, Mark has created a brand that rivals all Pinot and Chardonnay in the New World. This is especially true for the 86 Futo- a Pinot Noir project with Abreu, which was bestowed 95 pts from Parker. Impossible to leave unmentioned when discussing Aubert is his 99pt Parker awarded Reuling Vineyard- the utmost score ever given to a New World Chardonnay.