Description

The “Old Block” refers to the oldest half-acre section of our Home Vineyard, originally planted with own-rooted Cabernet Sauvignon vines in 1979. East-facing, gently sloping at 1550-1600 ft. elevation, the topsoil here is brownish-yellow clay-loam, over volcanic ash and quartz subsoil.

This limited cuvée is produced only in years when we happen to harvest a full barrel worth of grapes in one pass through the site. At Clos Saron, we harvest our vineyards in consecutive weekly passes, exclusively picking clusters that are ripe to the touch (just like assessing the ripeness of an avocado by a gentle squeeze), essentially making a “cluster select” type wine (widely associated only with late-harvest wine) from our whole crop.

Our Pinots are long lived and slow to evolve. Our signature “Home Vineyard” Pinot is aged for 5 years before release, and the “Old Block” cuvée a few years longer. In the long run, our goal is to hold it back for 12-15 years before release (the time it usually “turns its first corner” in terms of its evolution). In order to do that, we skip 2-3 years between releases. This 2015 vintage was released in January, 2024.

By comparison, the “Old Block” is always a bit lighter in color and body than the “Home Vineyard”, leaning toward red- rather than black- fruits, with more flowery hints and a finer texture. The “Home” tends to be denser, more structured and savory.