Lioco - 2024 - Pinot Noir Mendocino County - 750 ml.

Lioco Pinot Noir Mendocino County is a focused, practice-organic expression of California Pinot that captures the cooler coastal influence of Mendocino County while remaining light-to-medium in weight. Crafted from fruit sourced across multiple Mendocino vineyards, this bottling is fermented in open-top tanks with a small percentage of whole-cluster fruit, then aged in neutral oak and stainless steel. The result is a transparent, fruit-driven wine that emphasizes bright red berry aromatics—strawberry, wild cherry—and a savory undercurrent of forest floor, dried roses and herbal lift. On the palate it offers a soft, dusty texture, juicy, mouthwatering acidity and a spicy, persistent finish. Because the winery limits new oak and leans on stainless, the primary fruit and terroir notes come forward clearly, making this Pinot well suited to lighter, vegetable-forward and poultry dishes. Pairings like rotisserie chicken, hot smoked salmon and mushroom tempura highlight the wine’s freshness and savory complexity. Reviewers have praised the 2022 vintage as overdelivering for its price, noting appealing nuances such as orange peel, bergamot and autumn leaves alongside earthy, herbaceous hints. Drinkers seeking a refined, coastal-leaning California Pinot with transparency and everyday elegance will find this Lioco Mendocino Pinot Noir very approachable now, with enough brightness to hold through several years in a cool cellar.