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The 2015 Quintus is chock full of red fruits like cherry, pomegranate and raspberry, and most notable is its impressive silky, satin-like texture. Controlled by horizontal boundaries, this wine has more silk than sweet, with a nice melding of tannin and acid, and a beautiful elegant finish.
Perched on a rugged hilltop, just five miles from the Pacific Ocean, where rocky, shallow soils and cool fog emanate from the Bodega Bay; these conditions are ideal for exceptional Pinot Noir. This vineyard literally sits on the edge of the earth, nudged to the limit line where fruit can be grown. There are very few sites in the world similar to these 25-acres of Biodynamic® estate vineyard which is divided into two distinctive blocks: Quintus and Terra Neuma. Terra Neuma is planted higher on the hillside where the topsoil is subject to more erosion. Fruit ripens earlier here compared to Quintus and tends to yield a wine with low alcohol and ripe, red fruit characteristics. The soil and chemistry of these unique blocks are consistent; so much so that we enable the character of each to distinguish itself by bottling these “brother” wines separately.
Growing season 2015 was in the fourth year of the severe drought in California. The normally rainy season between January and March was quite dry resulting in a lighter harvest and an early one. We continue to believe that our Biodynamic farming practices give us an edge over traditional farmers, since our vines have been taught to drive their roots deep into the soils, claiming water from below, not above. We knew mid summer that harvest would come early, and it did for most of our vineyards but at de Coelo the cool climate and proximity to the ocean mean grapes need to hang longer.
Our mid September harvest was pretty similar to 2014 out at the coast. The parcels of de Coelo that make up our Quintus blend are planted with clones 667and 828. The grapes were harvested at night to protect their delicate flavors and to preserve freshness.
Like Terra Neuma, this Pinot Noir is unfiltered and fermented with native yeast.
Before bottling Quintus rests in French oak barrels for sixteen months.
