2024 Crosby Roamann - Pinot Noir Petaluma Gap (750ml)

Crosby Roamann is the work of husband-and-wife team Juliana and Sean McBride, who left the East Coast in 2010 and drove cross-country with their twin daughters to pursue exceptional single-vineyard winemaking in Northern California. Sean serves as winemaker while Juliana runs sales and marketing, and together they've built a small, family-driven operation defined by minimal intervention and a genuine old-world-meets-modern-sensibility ethos. Everything is done by hand, from sourcing meticulously farmed cool-climate fruit to guiding each wine through native yeast fermentation.

This Pinot Noir comes from the Rowan Vineyard, on a steep, south-facing hillside on the northern edge of the Petaluma Gap, where cooling bay influence and a long growing season help preserve freshness and structure in the fruit. The soil here carries an unusually high concentration of limestone for the region, which Crosby Roamann believes lends the wine added lift and precision. The grapes are fully destemmed and fermented in stainless steel for two weeks using native yeasts, then aged for seventeen months in French oak, a portion of it new, with a hands-off approach throughout.

The wine opens with fresh strawberry and rhubarb, layered with dark cocoa and a touch of crushed red pepper, before moving toward black tea and olive tapenade on the finish. Medium to full in body with a long, savory close, it pairs well with duck breast, grilled lamb, or an herb-roasted chicken.