Vineyards

The Etude Carneros Pinot Noir hails from our estate vineyards tucked away in the far Northwest corner of the Carneros appellation, just on the Southwest corner of Sonoma. Unlike most of Carneros, which is largely uplifted bay bottoms with soils composed of clay, the soils at Grace Benoist Ranch are variations of soils influenced by volcanic origin. Combining these well-drained, rocky upland soils with the extreme western location closer to the Pacific Ocean and San Pablo Bay make this site an ideal place to grow Burgundian varieties. The vineyard parcels at Grace Benoist Ranch conform to the various soil types and the changing contours of the Ranch topography. Individual vineyards average only eight acres in size and spacing is dense to ensure low per vine yields of fully concentrated fruit. Grace Benoist Ranch is farmed to Etude’s exacting standards, using environmentally sound viticultural practices. The Ranch is sustainably farmed and certified by the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance as well as Fish Friendly Farming. At the Ranch, there are four smaller vineyards (Laniger, Deer Camp, Temblor and Heirloom) with five principal unique soil types and 20 distinct Pinot Noir clones.