Our highest vineyard, the Marking Corral, named for an old sheep enclosure, reaches heights of 1,200 to 1,260 feet and yields some truly unique Pinot Noirs. It is also our most challenging field to cultivate. The rows are spaced seven feet apart on a hillside, requiring tractors to navigate carefully to avoid damaging the trellises.
Pinot Noir clusters are small, typically less than a quarter pound and frequently develop millerandage—a mixture of normal sized and tiny berries.
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Building terraces in preparation for planting vines in the lower block of the Marking Corral, 1999. The steep vineyard is about 1,200 feet above the valley floor and is surrounded by forest.
In fact, one particular section is so steep that we only work on it during daylight hours. The upper area of the vineyard is planted with four different clones, with the primary selections being ENTAV 114 and ENTAV 115, and the lower block provides a small contribution of ENTAV 777. After destemming and fermentation in small bins, the juice aged for 16 months in French oak barrels, with 35% of them being new. This field is typically the last to harvest, and the resulting flavors are reminiscent of wild cherries, with a pleasing tartness and moderate tannins. The yields were low in 2021 and the resulting wine has a remarkably long finish.
Silver Medal winner.
