2023 Hirsch ‘East Ridge’ Estate Pinot Noir Fall Release 2025

The East Ridge Estate Pinot Noir is a mountain wine: muscular, dark-fruited and structured, it’s a regal and powerful Pinot Noir that is among our most cellar-worthy.

Sloping steeply into a deep, interior valley, the East Ridge is somewhat sheltered from the full onslaught of the coastal influences, making this a relatively warmer site. These vines are some of the oldest at Hirsch and are stressed by phylloxera and shallow mountain soils. Yields are extremely low in the oldest sections.

Around eighty percent of the old vines on the East Ridge are stricken with phylloxera, requiring intensive and meticulous vine-by-vine farming. In 2019 we began a staged replanting process, an effort that will continue for some years to come.

Tasting Notes

The 2023 East Ridge is a crystalline expression of one of our most unique sites, seen through the lens of a cool, Old World-style vintage. The hallmark tannins of East Ridge are long and silky in this vintage, enveloped by mid-weight dark fruit and uplifted by notes of alpine strawberries, anise and dried herbs.

Service Notes

This wine is expressive and approachable now but will gain weight and polish with a few years in the cellar.