2015 Sanford Gravity Flow Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills 750 ml

Sanford Winery Exclusive Pinot Noir

Sanford Winery’s focused production of Burgundy varieties has earned the wines inroads at America’s premier watering holes, including Bouchon, Spruce, The French Laundry, and Michael Mina, as well as a massive fan in critic Jeb Dunnuck, who decorated all of their 2015 single-vineyard Pinot Noirs with scores between 92-96 points. Why isn’t the 2015 Sanford “Gravity Flow” on that list? Because until now, only visitors to Sanford’s tasting room or website would get a shot at this wine. But today, Wine Access friends have exclusive access to this dense, ruby Pinot that is absolutely packed with red fruit, sweet spice, and herbs. 

This is as simple as we can put it: The Sta. Rita Hills AVA is one of the New World’s top regions for Pinot Noir, and Sanford Winery deserves credit for its very existence. Major producers flying high in this subregion of Santa Barbara County stand on the shoulders of Sanford, which for 50 years has recognized Sta. Rita Hills as one of the finest spots for Burgundy-style wines in the U.S. Sanford first planted vines some 50 years ago in the region, and today, the now-legendary Sanford & Benedict Vineyard is a site that Wine Enthusiast lists as one of the five most important and iconic vineyards in the state of California. The region’s official AVA status followed shortly thereafter, and the area has been a mecca for premium Pinot Noir ever since.

With the 2015 Sanford “Gravity Flow” Pinot Noir, we have a rich, winery-only gem, sourced from fruit from one of the most iconic vineyards in the Golden State. Named for the natural springs at the Sanford property, Gravity Flow hails from a dozen vineyard blocks on the estate, including plots of old-vine Pinot at the iconic Sanford & Benedict Vineyard.

In 2007, Sanford Winery—now guided by the wine-steeped Terlato family— acquired the Sanford & Benedict Vineyard, reuniting it with the adjacent La Rinconada property, which houses the winery and tasting room.

The 2015 Gravity Flow is sourced from 12 plots between those sites, including said parcels of old-vine Pinot at Sanford & Benedict. This is ground zero for Pinot Noir—Sanford & Benedict is a hallowed site that Sandhi (Rajat Parr), Au Bon Climat, Tyler, Ken Brown, Gavin Chanin (Lutum), and other top coastal producers have tapped in the pursuit of top-flight California Pinot Noir. Brilliant, dense, and balancing ripe intensity and mouth-watering acidity, this is a crowd-pleasing Wine Access exclusive at more than half off. Don’t count on it lasting long.