Vine to Wine: Heritage Clones Bring New Life to West Coast Pinot Noir

Vine to Wine is a new column at JamesSuckling.com focused on winemaking and viticulture around the world. This week's column is by Adam Lee, a veteran California winemaker and pinot noir specialist. Lee cofounded Siduri Wines in 1994 and sold the company to Jackson Family Wines in 2015. Since then he has branched into several other winemaking projects, including his own Clarice Wine Company in Windsor, California, and consulting with Rombauer Vineyards on pinot noir. He previously ran the joint-venture project Beau Marchais with the late Phillipe Cambie.

_________________________________________________________________________________

When Jake and Maggie Coin, the owners of Copper Six Wine, decided to plant their new vineyard in California’s Russian River Valley to pinot noir, they chose to use three clones – Pommard, Calera and Mount Eden. Their selection of these heritage clones, rather than the Dijon clones of pinot noir that dominated the pinot planting boom that occurred in the wake of the popular 2009 film Sideways, is something that is being mirrored throughout California when growers decide to plant (or replant) vineyards.

Back in the early 1970s, winemakers in California had few choices when it came to pinot noir clones. The University of California, Davis, offered only three commercially available options: Wadenswil (also known as 2A), Pommard 4, and Gamay Beaujolais (a misnomer, as it was neither gamay nor likely from Beaujolais).

However, some pioneering vintners bypassed the limited selection and brought their own cuttings from France, planting vineyards with what became known as “selections.” These weren’t clones in the strictest sense, since they weren’t derived from a single vine, but they nonetheless produced wines of distinction. The Mount Eden selection, championed by Martin Ray in the Santa Cruz Mountains, and Charles Coury’s Alsace-sourced cuttings in Oregon are two famous examples.

A major shift occurred in the mid-1980s, when David Adelsheim of Oregon’s Adelsheim Vineyard persuaded Dr. Raymond Bernard of the University of Dijon to share some of the clones that had been meticulously developed in Burgundy. Bernard had been working since the 1960s to identify clones that were virus-resistant and ripened early enough to avoid late-season weather issues—two key concerns in Burgundy’s challenging climate.

The first Dijon clones arrived in Oregon in 1987 and quickly gained traction both in the Willamette Valley and in California. These clones – identified by numbers such as 113, 114, 115, 459, 667, 777, 828, and 943 – became the backbone of new vineyard plantings.

Winemakers and pinot noir aficionados soon took notice, with customers even developing preferences for specific clones. In response, wineries began bottling wines with clonal designations (searching terms like “115,” “777,” or “Dijon” in wine databases today still yields numerous results).

Fast forward 40 years, and the dominance of Dijon clones is waning. While some, like 667 and 114, are still commonly planted, others are being used more as blending components rather than as standalone features. Many winemakers are now embracing a “back to the future” approach, reviving California’s heritage clones alongside one of the original non-Dijon clones from the 1980s.

What’s driving this change? There are two key factors: climate change and a shift in stylistic preferences.

The Dijon clones were initially selected for their ability to ripen early, which was crucial in Burgundy during the 1970s and early 1980s, when challenging vintages were common. Oregon, facing similar issues, also gravitated toward these clones.

California, however, didn’t have the same ripening struggles but still embraced the Dijon clones in the 1990s as the popularity of pinot noir surged. Then came the warm 2003 and 2004 vintages, producing naturally bigger, riper wines – even from slower-ripening clones. Around the same time, the movie Sideways catapulted Pinot Noir into mainstream consciousness, and the market demanded the lush, fruit-forward wines that Dijon clones readily delivered.

Now, with warmer growing seasons becoming the norm, the need for early-ripening clones has diminished. Instead, winemakers are seeking clones that ripen more slowly, allowing for better development of tannins, seed, and skins at lower sugar levels. Moreover, today’s wine consumers are moving away from pinot noirs that emphasize sheer ripeness and weight, instead favoring balance and complexity. As vines age and roots reach deeper into the soil, these qualities are naturally enhanced, especially in older heritage clones.

Of course, what ultimately matters is what is put in the bottle.

For Jake and Maggie at Copper Six, their decision to plant heritage clones was based in part on exactly that – what’s in the bottle.  People like John and Diane Bucher of Bucher Wines, also in Sonoma’s Russian River Valley, produce the Bucher Vineyard Pommard Clone Pinot Noir, providing the opportunity to see what that clone brings to a wine.

Likewise, nearby Merry Edwards Winery – where founder Merry Edwards helped identify and isolate the Mount Eden clone (also known as the Merry Edwards selection, or Clone 37) – bottles a Georganne Vineyard Pinot Noir that comes entirely from that clone. Wines such as these provide invaluable insight to future growers when they make decisions on what to plant and are harbingers of what you will find more frequently in your wine glass in the future.

– Adam Lee