2016 Keller Estate Pinot Noir The Peninsula La Cruz Vineyard Petaluma Gap Sonoma County 750 ml

Just south of where Santa Monica Blvd. crosses Wilshire, a few blocks west of Rodeo Drive, sits the regal Peninsula Hotel Beverly Hills. The only Southern California hotel that’s held Five Stars (Forbes) and Five Diamonds (AAA) for the last three decades, the Peninsula epitomizes class coupled with California cool. 

A night there will cost you about a grand. An hour-long couple’s massage, $450 before gratuity.

Looking at those numbers, the Keller Estate Pinot Noir, at $23 per glass, might be the biggest bargain in the place—which makes every Wine Access member with a bottle in their cellar took advantage of a straight-up steal. 

Keller Estate is one of the greatest Pinot producers in Sonoma County, and we’ve loved their La Cruz from our very first sip. It reminds us of some of the most hauntingly beautiful and sublime Pinots we’ve enjoyed from the Central Coast and Burgundy. 

Some of the most respected California winemakers—like David Ramey, Phil Titus, Helen Keplinger, Morgan Twain-Peterson MW, and Pax Mahle—think of the Petaluma Gap as a source of Grand Cru–quality California grapes. One of the primary reasons is the wind: Salty, powerful breezes off the Pacific funneled through the 15-mile-wide inland valley buffet the vines, which then develop small grapes sporting thick skins and packed with profound flavor.

Certified sustainable, Keller Estate’s La Cruz vineyard contains Pommard and Dijon clones rooted in mineral-rich clay soils, and the force of the wind challenges the grapes to ripen. Hand-harvesting takes place at night, then the grapes are destemmed, cold-soaked for five days, and aged in fine French oak. The 2016 La Cruz is proof that Keller Estate stands with the best.