2023 Fess Parker - Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills (750ml)

Fess Parker Winery began in 1988, when the Texas-born actor famous for playing Davy Crockett and Daniel Boone bought a 714-acre ranch along the Foxen Canyon Wine Trail. What he first imagined as a small vineyard eventually grew into a multi-generational family estate, with his son Eli taking over winemaking duties in the mid-1990s and, alongside sister Ashley Parker Snider, continuing to lead the business today. The winery's tasting room, completed in 1994, still displays photos and memorabilia from Fess's television career alongside the wines that carry his name.

This bottling blends fruit from three of the winery's Sta. Rita Hills sites, Rio Vista, Ashley's, and Parker West vineyards, each contributing a distinct layer of character shaped by the appellation's rare east-west orientation, which channels cool ocean air deep into the valley. The wine spends nine months aging in French oak, about a third of it new, a shorter regimen than some of the estate's other Pinot Noir bottlings, chosen specifically to keep the wine fresh and approachable rather than heavily oak-driven.

The 2023 vintage is medium-bodied and earthy, opening with currant, wild cherry, and sagebrush before giving way to wild cranberry, dusty fennel frond, and toasted herb on the palate. Tea-like tannins provide gentle structure, while a lingering, spiced finish rounds things out. It's a natural match for roast pork, grilled lamb chops, or duck confit.