Sinnet Extended Tirage Extra Brut North Coast 2018

Sinnet was born in the foggy crevices of the Russian River Valley, where cool marine air threads through old redwoods, and vines settle into a slow-ripening rhythm. The philosophy here is vineyard-first – the belief that great sparkling wine starts in the soil. Everything is farmed with intention and made in the Méthode Traditionnelle, honoring the pioneering sparkling houses that first proved decades ago that Sonoma could stand alongside the world's great terroirs for elegance and precision.

Behind the wine is Weston Eidson, who took a genuinely unusual road to the cellar. He trained originally in international law – law school in Chicago, then a master's in International Political Economy from Warwick – before traveling through the world's celebrated wine regions and falling, hard, for winemaking. With that same curiosity still in tow, he treats sparkling wine as the meeting point of technical discipline and creative instinct. He's since gone on to co-found WESTBORN alongside icons Russell Bevan and Nathan Reeves, and if you needed more proof he's one to watch, check out what Jeb Dunnuck had to say of this label: “You can put [WESTBORN] up with not only the finest sparkling wines in California but also the best from Champagne.” High praise, indeed!

This particular bottling is a Pinot Noir-driven blend – with 65% Pinot Noir and 35% Chardonnay – from the excellent 2018 vintage, a long and cool growing year that preserved beautiful natural acidity, and plucked from what may be the most iconic mix of vineyard sites you can find in Northern California: Sonoma County’s Heintz, Durell, and Ritchie, Mendocino’s Ferrington, and Napa’s Hyde. Weston’s deep connections to vineyard managers and growers has allowed him access to this stellar grouping of plots in order to create a truly remarkable sparkling wine. After 80 months resting on the lees, it’s impossible to ignore the layers of toasty, autolytic richness, while the Extra Brut dosage keeps everything taut, dry, and precise. Expect fine, persistent bubbles and a seamless and polished texture – all together demonstrating wondrous freshness and complexity at once.

On the nose, look for oodles of baked apple and white peach giving way to lemon curd, toasted brioche, roasted hazelnut, and a smidge of honeycomb, with the Pinot lending a subtle note of wild strawberry underneath. The palate is bone-dry and mineral-driven – orchard fruit and citrus pith wrapped in that creamy, biscuity depth only real time on the lees can give – finishing long, saline, and refined. It's a wine that moves gracefully from aperitif to the dinner table and dresses up any occasion you point it at. At $59 a bottle vs. a $100 retail – with free shipping when you grab 3 – this is an extremely exciting value in California sparkling wine right now! Go get you some.