BXT McCormack Ranch Sparkling Pinot Noir Sacramento Delta 2022

Have you ever been out to eat at a restaurant, absolutely loved a dish, and asked your server how it was made? You begin to conjure big hopes of re-creating the delicious flavors at home, and then the server starts talking about techniques you've never even heard of and spouting a laundry list of ingredients. Slowly you begin to tune out and settle for the fact that you won't be enjoying this meal at home without filling your cupboard with never-to-be-used again spices and spending a pretty penny on fancy kitchen equipment. Lucky for us here at ACME, BXT winemaker Tom Sherwood experienced this exact feeling during a fateful trip to Champagne in 2018 and declared, "Challenge accepted!" He was inspired by the winemaking traditions, stories of growers, and stunning wines and decided to create a grand experiment to bring these philosophies home to California.

Tom grew up in an agricultural town outside Adelaide, mainly farming hay and sheep. His first foray into wine came while working as a dishwasher in his hometown. The sommelier at the restaurant introduced him to new varietals, styles, and regions, which sparked his interest. Tom attended the University of Adelaide, where he earned a Bachelor of Science in wine marketing, with full expectations to work on the industry's business side. However, he truly cut his teeth working multiple harvests in Barossa Valley and was mesmerized by the "plant" side of things, as he calls it. Tom met his wife Brittany during his last harvest in Australia, and the two moved back to her hometown of Napa. In Napa, Tom worked for a few wineries, most notably and memorably, Trefethen as a harvest intern; before joining the team at Rocca Family Vineyards as Head Winemaker.

BXT (which stands for Bubbles by Tom) is the definition of a grassroots brand. Tom insists on working with passionate growers who implement hand-farming and organic techniques for those grapes he and his team do not personally farm. The 2022 McCormack Ranch is sourced from a sandy vineyard planted right along the Sacramento River. Here, the soils are practically void of nutrients, so the vines have to dig deep into the earth to sustain themselves, resulting in drought-resistant vines.

The vineyard team handpicked the Pinot Noir for the 2022 Blanc de Noirs at the end of July. After a gentle pressing, the wine was fermented in used French oak puncheons and barrels and continued through a full malolactic fermentation. The wine aged 18 months in bottle, and was then hand-riddled and disgorged with a small dosage of .4g/L. Tiny bubbles dance across the palate of this beautifully textured sparkling wine, with aromas and flavors of zesty citrus and ripe red fruits and a touch of salinity in the background.