Kochana Chouette Vineyard Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast 2023

The 2022 Kochana Pinot Noir was one of those rare wines that flew out the door; a quiet sensation that left collectors wishing they’d grabbed more. Now, the 2023 vintage has arrived, and it’s even more captivating: graceful, layered, and ready to steal the spotlight once again!

Winemaker Anie Peszynski-Jones founded Kochana (meaning dearest in Polish) as a love letter to her family, who worked, dreamed, and persevered so she could chase her own passion. That devotion threads through every bottle she creates. From harvests in Napa and New Zealand to her years apprenticing under Thomas Rivers Brown, Anie has followed Pinot Noir across continents, learning its moods and mysteries.

What Anie does so well, and the reason we adore this wine, is trust that the consumer knows quality. There is nothing gimmicky about this wine, no smoke and mirrors to pull your attention one way in order to hide something else. This wine is pure, soft, supple, and almost ethereal. And she knows that this beautiful expression of Pinot Noir is exactly enough.

Named for the watchful owl that guards its vines, Chouette Vineyard rests just outside Occidental, where redwoods meet the sea. Here, 20-year-old Calera and 115 clones root deep in sandy clay, yielding Pinot Noir of striking minerality, bright fruit, and quiet grace. Great wine always starts in the vineyard, and this pristine site delivered impeccable fruit in the 2023 vintage.

Anie's wine opens with a striking mineral core, laced with delicate hints of clove, sage, and rose petal. On the palate, its silken texture unfolds into layers of tart strawberry and cherry. The finish is soft, round, and long, framed by an acidity that builds with consistency. It left us in a quiet, thoughtful trance...and then we finished the bottle.