2022 Dragonette Cellars Pinot Noir Fiddlestix Vineyard Sta. Rita Hills 750 ml

Of all the wineries we’ve discovered at Wine Access, we’d be hard pressed to think of one that has been more rewarding than Dragonette Cellars. 

Run by John and Steve Dragonette and their friend Brandon Sparks-Gillis, the winery has been roundly praised by just about every critic who covers California. Antonio Galloni of Vinous has called their wines “truly world class,” adding, “and I don’t use those words lightly.”

Demand for Dragonette has skyrocketed. Meanwhile, supply stays miniscule. But since Wine Access members have been snapping up Dragonette wines since they were WAY under the radar, we continue to score allocations of wines like their 2022 Fiddlestix Pinot Noir. Grown on of the most sacred terroirs in Santa Barbara—if not all of California—it’s ruby-hued, vibrant, and flawlessly balanced, a snapshot of one of the region’s most revered sites. Jeb Dunnuck called it a “straight-up brilliant effort” in his 95+ point review.

Dragonette’s success has been due to the fact that they’re brilliant winemakers—but also because they only work with top-flight sites, and Fiddlestix is one of the very best Pinot vineyards in California. It sits just across the street from Sanford & Benedict, the original Grand Cru of the Sta. Rita Hills.

Fiddlestix is located at the western end of the Santa Ynez Valley inside what is essentially a wind tunnel. The briny Pacific breezes that blow through refresh the vines and regulate temperatures that just flirt with the mid-70s, resulting in Pinot Noir grapes that have developed slowly to show full-bodied, majestic opulence.

This is a brilliant bottle of wine. Savor it.