Savoy Vineyard in the Anderson Valley of Mendocino County is one of California’s most highly regarded, classic Pinot noir vineyards. When we determined it would be wise to cover our risk a little bit and source fruit from outside our extreme coastal vineyard, there were only a few locations we would even consider. Savoy topped the list. Why?

The main reason we looked outside our 34 acres of Pinot noir was how unpredictable and harsh our weather could be and how that often led to stingy yields. We would swing from an economically viable two tons per acre to less than a ton per acre which did not affect quality but crushed the bottom line. If we were going to buy fruit, however, the wine needed to have the potential to transmit a strong sense of place. It also needed to experience different weather than us or, at the very least, have more optimal weather during critical times in the vine’s growing cycle. Savoy is in a continental growing region where days are warm and evenings are cold. As such, the weather is often better at flowering for the vines and yields are far higher and more predicable than in a maritime climate like Peay Estate. But, importantly, the wines are also not fruit-driven wines and, while concentrated, always have a savory character and what people call “Mendocino spice”. It is akin to turned earth and some brown spices which counter-balance the sweet, dark cherry fruit expression of Savoy.

The 44-acre vineyard was planted by Richard Savoy in 1991 and the current owners, FEL, have re-planted and continue to invest in the quality of the vineyard. We are quite pleased to make a Savoy under our Peay label and the wine nicely complements our line-up of estate wines having a touch more fruit forwardness and is more approachable in its youth. Further, the Peay Savoy is a little different than other expressions of Savoy as there is often a floral component in the wine and you will recognize Vanessa’s steady, focused hand on the rudder of the wine. A delicious expression of California Pinot noir.