Native9 Rancho Ontiveros Vineyard Pinot Noir 2012

Vinification

Harvested over three days beginning on September 28th, the 9th vintage of Native9 contains all the clones from Rancho Ontiveros, except clone 115. This vintage was 100% whole cluster fermented with each clone separately aged for 21 months in 20% new French Oak. Blending occurred in May of 2014 and the wine was finished and bottled in July of the same year.

Tasting notes

In its youth, the wine from this vintage appears to be highly aromatic and nuanced with added structure for long term aging of 10 years or more. The delicate, old world nature of Pinot Noir shines through with classic character as if it were a wine from the Southern AOCs of Burgundy.

Wine& Spirits - Top 100 Wineries of 2021

Winery Description

Outstanding small production, organic Pinot Noir from Santa Maria Valley

“Native9 is the fulfillment of my own American story two centuries in the making. Tracing my roots back to the first men and women who settled in the Santa Maria Valley, I worked for hourly wages along with my parents to buy a small plot of land our ancestors’ 8,900-acre Mexican land grant: a modest cattle ranch where I planted my 8-acre vineyard and a panoramic view of the land that had once been our own. Planted in 1997 by my own two hands with the help of friends and family while I attended Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, Rancho Ontiveros Vineyard is now considered one of the finest sites for Pinot Noir in California. As a natural extension of my deeply personal vision for this vineyard, Native9 is made in small lots with a nod to both Old World sensibilities and New World stylistic freedom with the help of my longtime friend and vetted winemaker, Paul Wilkins.

Though I wasn’t born into the wine industry by traditional means, I have vine-growing and farming in my blood. The name Native9 reflects my gratitude to the generations of California farmers and ranchers who came before me.” - James Ontiveros

James Ontiveros is a man of a place and it is that place he chooses to build his work of art. What was placed in his hands again with his parents, only a mere fraction of the vast land his ancestors got, he planted grape seedlings with his own hand in 1997. He has meticulously farmed his vineyard following organic and sustainable practices to grow the best fruit he knows how. With his long time schoolmate and winemaker, Paul Wilkins, they craft a true beauty of a Pinot Noir that is pure Santa Maria, 

Native 9 wines are part of the prestigious "IPOB -In Pursuit of Balance" winery associations. The winemaker's Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are primarily focused on bringing wines with that sense of place to the table.