JEB DUNNUCK 96 POINTS - "Sean Capiaux is based in the Napa Valley, where he is the winemaker at O’Shaughnessy. He makes his own Pinots at Progeny, a sister property on Mount Veeder. Working with four single vineyards, he started his own label when he was at Peter Michael in 1994, starting with Hirsch. In 1998, he made his first Pisoni and, with James Hall of Patz & Hall, is the longest buyer of Pisoni fruit."
"Firm tannins coat the medium to full-bodied palate of the always impressive 2024 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard, which has a lovely floral rose component on the nose. With 20% whole-cluster fermentation, the wine is dark and brooding in black and blue fruit, with ample depth and concentration, aged 11 months in 30% new oak. This is an impressive wine already, set for fall 2026 release, that should hold well over time. Drink 2028-2036."
ANTONIO GALLONI 95 POINTS - "Sean Capiaux’s 2024 Pinots are hugely worthy follow-ups to the 2023s. I find the 2024s pretty potent, almost surprisingly so. That won’t be an issue in time, but the 2024s are less forthcoming than the wines typically are at this stage, perhaps because Capiaux is picking just a bit earlier than in the past. As always, the wines are done in a forward style. Some of the sites are planted with heritage clones that are very distinctive. All the Pinots are hugely appealing. They also happen to be superb values. Capiaux recently purchased Occidental Vineyard on the West Sonoma Coast, a site that the Duttons planted for Steve Kistler in the early 1990s. It’s Capiaux’s first estate vineyard. Not a bad place to start, considering the wines have been made here previously."
"The 2024 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard is one of the most elegant wines I have tasted from this site, a vineyard that has historically produced big, large-scale Pinots. Bright red-toned fruit and blood orange fruit open first, followed by white pepper, chalk and floral overtones that lift the finish effortlessly. This is an especially fine vintage for Sean Capiaux's Pisoni Pinot."
"Firm tannins coat the medium to full-bodied palate of the always impressive 2024 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard, which has a lovely floral rose component on the nose. With 20% whole-cluster fermentation, the wine is dark and brooding in black and blue fruit, with ample depth and concentration, aged 11 months in 30% new oak. This is an impressive wine already, set for fall 2026 release, that should hold well over time. Drink 2028-2036."
ANTONIO GALLONI 95 POINTS - "Sean Capiaux’s 2024 Pinots are hugely worthy follow-ups to the 2023s. I find the 2024s pretty potent, almost surprisingly so. That won’t be an issue in time, but the 2024s are less forthcoming than the wines typically are at this stage, perhaps because Capiaux is picking just a bit earlier than in the past. As always, the wines are done in a forward style. Some of the sites are planted with heritage clones that are very distinctive. All the Pinots are hugely appealing. They also happen to be superb values. Capiaux recently purchased Occidental Vineyard on the West Sonoma Coast, a site that the Duttons planted for Steve Kistler in the early 1990s. It’s Capiaux’s first estate vineyard. Not a bad place to start, considering the wines have been made here previously."
"The 2024 Pinot Noir Pisoni Vineyard is one of the most elegant wines I have tasted from this site, a vineyard that has historically produced big, large-scale Pinots. Bright red-toned fruit and blood orange fruit open first, followed by white pepper, chalk and floral overtones that lift the finish effortlessly. This is an especially fine vintage for Sean Capiaux's Pisoni Pinot."
