Kochana Pinot Noir Chouette Vineyard Sonoma Coast 2023
Pinot Noir | US
We’ve loved every wine we’ve tried so far from Kochana, a tiny new producer with a lot of style. Not new to winemaking though – winemaker/owner Anie Peszynski-Jones was the longtime head winemaker under THE Thomas Rivers Brown at Mending Wall in Napa. Like a prototypical Brown protégée, she brings impeccable skills and confident self-expression to her personal label.
This 2023 shows the purity and elegance of the long, cool growing season. Wine Spectator rated the year 96 points overall for Sonoma Pinot, so we got curious and looked back through their vintage charts. Turns out 2023 and 2021 are tied as the TOP vintages of the last 25 years!
The four-acre Chouette Vineyard is a couple miles from the Pacific, near the town of Occidental, where redwoods and vegetable farms meet the clean hills that roll out to the ocean. We can feel the bracing cold mornings in the sip.Notes of electric strawberry and polished red cherry flesh out an ethereal mineral core. A silky texture is tenderized by a nice dose of acid, and delectable flecks of clove, sage, and rose petal bloom into a long, rounded finish. This has the same soft chew and meditative grace that are Anie’s signature. Delicious! And a beautiful sense of emotion.
About the Producer
In Polish, kochana [ko-HA-na] means “dearest” – a word used to address someone you love deeply. Kochana winemaker-owner Anie Peszynski-Jones is deeply influenced by her Polish family – parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents who sacrificed much for her, her siblings, and cousins. She grew up in Sacramento, California, and graduated from Cal Poly with a degree in Agriculture Business. She made her way through cellar internships from Sacramento to New Zealand to Napa and Sonoma, with a crucial stint at Pinot Noir-focused Flowers Winery. In 2017, Anie landed a full-time position at Mending Wall in Napa under the legendary Thomas Rivers Brown. She worked her way up to the head winemaker post, primarily producing Cabernet Sauvignon. For her own small-production label, she focuses on her beloved Pinot Noir.
- WinemakerAnie Peszynski-Jones
- CountryUS
- RegionCalifornia
- Sub-RegionNorth Coast
- AppellationSonoma County
- VineyardChouette Vineyard
- Alcohol13.5%
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