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Artisan.wine · Failla · Fort Ross-Seaview · West Sonoma Coast
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230 Cases Made Worldwide · 24 Bottles to Artisan
"Profound & delicious & most compelling of the vintage."
Failla Estate Fort Ross-Seaview Pinot Noir 2024. Ehren Jordan's flagship estate cuvée from the ridge that put America back on the world Pinot map. Winner of our "Best of the Best Cult California" tasting. 230 cases produced in total; only 2 cases (24 bottles) allocated to Artisan. That's it.
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Dear Artisans,
A few weeks ago we sat down and ran our annual "Best of the Best Cult California" tasting — the great names of the West Sonoma Coast and Anderson Valley, lined up blind. The wine that walked away with it was the 2024 Failla Estate Fort Ross-Seaview Pinot Noir — a wine of such pedigree and presence that it managed to outshine bottles we'd paid two and three times as much for. Vinous, the only critic to publish so far on 2024, gave it 96 points.
If you haven't been paying attention to Fort Ross-Seaview, this is the moment. The AVA — a tiny 27,500-acre ridge that hugs the Pacific 1,200–1,800 feet above the ocean, west of the San Andreas Fault — has quietly become the single most important Pinot Noir address in America. Consider who calls it home:
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Fort Ross-Seaview · The Neighborhood
RAEN — the 100-point, Rank #1 and Rank #4 Wine of the Year scorers (Carlo & Dante Mondavi's project)
Marcassin — Helen Turley's near-mythic cult that traded for $1,000+ at release
Wayfarer — WS Rank #8 Wine of the Year, the Jayson Pahlmeyer estate
Peter Michael — the Sir Peter Michael / Wine Spectator Hall of Fame estate
Flowers Winery — the original Sonoma Coast pioneer
Hirsch Vineyards — the Sonoma Coast "founding fruit" source
Williams Selyem — the producer that started the cult-California Pinot phenomenon
That is the address book of the greatest American Pinot Noirs of this decade. Failla sits on the same ridge.
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The Winemaker · Ehren Jordan
A Rhône apprentice at Chave. A Napa heavyweight at Turley. A West Sonoma Coast original.
Ehren Jordan apprenticed at Jean-Louis Chave in Hermitage in the early '90s — one of two living Rhône names that wine writers will compare to Romanee-Conti without flinching. He returned to California and became the original winemaker at Turley Wine Cellars, where he spent 18 years building out one of Napa's most singular cult portfolios alongside Larry Turley and Helen Turley.
He founded Failla in 1998 with his wife Anne-Marie, on the eastern flank of the Sonoma Coast before there was even a Fort Ross-Seaview AVA. Today he farms three estate vineyards on the ridge — Hirsch-adjacent, planted on the same fractured Franciscan-complex marine soils — with native fermentation, whole-cluster, and zero new oak on the village wines. The Estate Pinot is the top of the pyramid.
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The Bottle
230 cases produced. 24 bottles for Artisan.
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Failla Estate Fort Ross-Seaview Pinot Noir 2024 · VM 96
⚠ 24 Bottles
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Estate · West Sonoma Coast · 1,200–1,800 ft above the Pacific
2024 Failla Estate Fort Ross-Seaview Pinot Noir
Estate fruit from Failla's three Fort Ross-Seaview vineyards · native ferment · 30% whole cluster · neutral French oak · 230 cases produced · drink 2026 through 2040
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96Vinous · 2024
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97Dunnuck · 2021
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95Suckling · 2023
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Vinous is the only critic to publish on 2024 so far. The previous two vintages give you the pedigree:
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97 Points · Jeb Dunnuck · 2021 Vintage
"A semi-opaque red, the 2021 Pinot Noir Estate offers lots of ripe mixed berry and blue fruits as well as notes of candied flowers, loads of graphite and dark stone, and well-balanced spice. Full-bodied on the palate, with ripe, sweet tannins, it's the fullest bodied of these wines from Failla. Another exceptional wine from Ehren Jordan, it will certainly benefit from another few years in bottle before drinking 2025–2040."
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95 Points · James Suckling · 2023 Vintage
"Rich aromas of black tea, bergamot, shiitake mushrooms, plums and macerated black cherries. A profound and delicious medium-bodied wine with length, sturdy tannins and refreshing acidity. Drink or hold to see these flavors evolve and integrate."
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96 Points · Vinous · 2024 Vintage (Current)
The only published score on the 2024 to date — and the highest score yet given to a Failla Estate Pinot Noir by Vinous. "Most compelling of the vintage." JD and JS reviews of the prior two vintages remain the clearest articulation of what this wine becomes in the cellar.
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Winery Direct
$95.00
Artisan Allocation
$89.99
24 bottles · 2 of the 230 cases made
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More from Ehren Jordan
The Failla you can drink tonight.
A second cuvée from the same hands — built for the table rather than the cellar.
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Failla "Lola" Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2023 · DM 95 / VM 94 / JS 94
In Stock
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The Daily Failla · The Compelling Value
2023 Failla "Lola" Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
DM 95 · VM 94 · JS 94
Named for Ehren's daughter. Three critics in lockstep at 94–95 points. Sourced from Failla's three estate parcels plus a small handful of select grower sites on the West Sonoma Coast, then made with the same gentle hand as the Estate Pinot — native ferment, whole cluster, neutral oak — at close to half the price. The bottle to drink while the Estate matures.
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Last Call · Fort Ross-Seaview Adjacent
The neighborhood, in your cellar.
Last bottles from the same ridge and the same handful of producers we named above — RAEN, Hirsch, Wayfarer, Flowers, DuMOL, and Steve Kistler's Occidental project.
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RAEN "Royal St. Robert" Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2024 · JS 99 / VM 94
⚠ Last 5
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Mondavi Brothers' RAEN · The Village Cuvée · Last 5
2024 RAEN "Royal St. Robert" Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
JS 99 · VM 94
Carlo & Dante Mondavi's village blend from the Sonoma Coast / Fort Ross-Seaview parcels. 99 points from James Suckling. The accessible entry to the 100-pt RAEN project.
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RAEN "Sea Field" Fort Ross-Seaview Pinot Noir 2024 · JS 98 / VM 95
⚠ Last 3
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RAEN's Estate Cru · Same Ridge as Failla · Last 3
2024 RAEN "Sea Field" Fort Ross-Seaview Pinot Noir
JS 98 · VM 95
RAEN's flagship estate Pinot from the same Fort Ross-Seaview ridge as Failla. 98 from Suckling on the 2024. The single-vineyard expression of the AVA.
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RAEN "Lady Marjorie" Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2024 · JS 97 / VM 94
Last 6
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The Mondavi Brothers' Chardonnay · JS 97 · Last 6
2024 RAEN "Lady Marjorie" Sonoma Coast Chardonnay
JS 97 · VM 94
RAEN's coastal Chardonnay — named for Carlo & Dante's mother. 97 from Suckling. Cold ridge fruit, native ferment, neutral oak. The Chardonnay counterpoint to a Failla bottle.
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Wayfarer Estate Fort Ross-Seaview Chardonnay 2022 · DM 96 / WA 94 / WS 94
⚠ Last 8
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The Pahlmeyer Estate · Same Ridge as Failla · Last 8
2022 Wayfarer "The Estate" Fort Ross-Seaview Chardonnay
DM 96 · WA 94 · WS 94
From the estate WS named #8 Wine of the Year in years past. The Jayson Pahlmeyer family's Fort Ross-Seaview project — the same ridge as Failla. Marked down 30% from winery direct.
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Hirsch "San Andreas Fault" Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2022 · JS 95 / WA 94 / JD 94
Last 7
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The Founder · David Hirsch · Last 7
2022 Hirsch "San Andreas Fault" Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
JS 95 · WA 94 · JD 94 · DM 94 · VM 93 · W&S 93
The estate that gave Williams Selyem, Failla and Marcassin their founding source of Sonoma Coast Pinot. Planted by David Hirsch in 1980 atop the San Andreas Fault — the original cult-California Pinot terroir.
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Occidental by Steve Kistler "Freestone-Occidental" Pinot Noir 2023 · WS 95 / WA 94
⚠ Last 4
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Steve Kistler's Pinot-Only Project · Last 4
2023 Occidental "Freestone-Occidental" Pinot Noir
WS 95 · WA 94
After 30 years building Kistler Vineyards into California's reference-point Chardonnay house, Steve Kistler walked away to start over with Pinot only. Occidental is the result. Same West Sonoma Coast neighborhood.
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DuMOL MacIntyre Estate Pinot Noir 2023 · JS 98 / WA 96 / WE 96 / VM 95-97 / JD 95
Last 6
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DuMOL's Coastal Estate Cru · JS 98 · Last 6
2023 DuMOL MacIntyre Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir
JS 98 · WA 96 · WE 96 · VM 95-97 · JD 95
DuMOL's flagship estate Pinot — 98 points from Suckling, five critics at 95+. Coastal ridge fruit just south of Fort Ross-Seaview, made by Andy Smith. A peer of Failla and RAEN.
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Flowers Winery Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2023 · JD 94 / JS 93 / WE 93 / DM 93
In Stock
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The Original West Sonoma Coast Pioneer · Best Value
2023 Flowers Winery Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir
JD 94 · JS 93 · WE 93 · DM 93
Walt & Joan Flowers were among the first to plant Pinot on the West Sonoma Coast in the late '80s. Marked down 29% from winery direct. The original pioneer at the best price in the lineup.
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Failla · Fort Ross-Seaview · The Allocation
24 bottles. 230 cases made.
The most compelling Pinot of the vintage.
Failla Estate FRSV Pinot $89.99 / 24 bottles · Lola Pinot $54.97 · RAEN Royal St. Robert $73.97 / 5 left · RAEN Sea Field $119.99 / 3 left · RAEN Lady Marjorie Chard $74.99 / 6 left · Wayfarer Estate Chard $84.97 / 8 left · Hirsch San Andreas $79.99 / 7 left · Occidental by Kistler $74.97 / 4 left · DuMOL MacIntyre $108.97 / 6 left · Flowers Sonoma Coast $49.97.
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All my best,
James Tran
Artisan.wine
P.S. With only 24 bottles of the Estate and a critic-published 96-point endorsement, this one moves quickly. If you want the full Fort Ross-Seaview education in a single shipment, take the Failla Estate (the most compelling of the vintage), the RAEN Sea Field (a 98-pt single-vineyard from the same ridge), and the Wayfarer Chardonnay (the white answer). Three bottles, one AVA, the entire conversation. Text 650-880-3553 if you'd like me to build the case for you.
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Artisan.wine
artisan.wine
Chat → artisan.wine/?chat · Email → sales@artisan.wine
Text → 650-880-3553 · Phone → 650-917-8080
Please enjoy responsibly · Must be 21+ · Allocation limited; pricing & availability subject to change
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