McIntyre Family Wines, Winemakers Series, Don Van Staaveran, Pinot Noir, 2021, Santa Lucia Highlands AVA, California, America

Producer Profile

McIntyre Family Wines lies in the “sweet spot” of Monterey County’s Santa Lucia Highlands AVA. Originally planted in 1973, the 80-acre site (60 acres planted) boasts some of the Highlands’ oldest Pinot Noir and Chardonnay vines.

Proprietor Steve McIntyre is one of the most knowledgeable viticulturists in California. As owner/operator of Monterey Pacific, he farms 16,000 acres in Monterey County.

The McIntyre Estate Vineyard was among the first properties in the Santa Lucia Highlands to be SIP (Sustainability In Practice) Certified, using numerous holistic regenerative practices including carbon sequestration with Biochar produced by slow pyrolysis.

WINEMAKER SERIES OVERVIEW

“The idea for the Winemaker Series was born out of impatience and age-related urgency! As fervent believers that collaboration amplifies the creative process, we bring you this Winemaker series, recognizing many of the great wine makers we have had the privilege of collaborating with over the decades. If I’m lucky I’ll get to participate in another 20 to 30 vintages as our vineyards and wines evolve. Collaborating with a diverse set of winemakers and viticulturists provides exciting opportunities to experiment and accelerate our pace of discovery. Each Winemaker brings their own style and experience, just as a great chef or a musician, to the process of producing a life enhancing experience best shared with others”!

“This wine was handcrafted by Don Van Staaveran, who brings nearly 50 years of winemaking experience to the endeavour. After spending his childhood on a Dairy, Don graduated Cal Poly in Fruit Science and over the span of 50 years rose to the top of Château St Jean, Artesa, and Three Sticks.  Like a lot of great winemaker’s he has worked in the vineyard as well as the cellar, in all facets of wine growing. Notably, he also makes wooden surfboards under the Cloudbreak Watercraft brand. We are extremely grateful and honoured to present Don‘s passion for your enjoyment!” – Steve McIntyre

Viticulture

This Pinot Noir owes much of its success to superior terroir and diligent, regenerative farming. It combines a filed blend of equal parts Swan and Calera selections with Dijon clone 943.The crop was thinned to a maximum of three tons per acre or 1.5 lbs. of fruit per foot of cordon. Row orientation is primarily north/south, which provides even sun exposure from morning to afternoon.

The McIntyre Estate Vineyard lies in the “sweet spot” of this rolling, bench land region. It produces incredibly intense and complex Pinot Noirs and well-structured, concentrated Chardonnays. It was among the first properties in the Santa Lucia Highlands to be SIP (Sustainability In Practice) Certified.

Winemaking

Don did not plan on becoming a winemaker but previous duties as a cellarman to winemaker serendipitously exposed his passion for the job. This Pinot Noir expresses his craft using 20% hole cluster juice, balance destemmed and placed in an open-top fermenter. Initial punch-downs at four times daily then decreased before pressing in a basket press directly into 50% French Oak and 50% new barrels. Stirring daily for malolactic fermentation to occur and aged for 16 months complete with monthly stirring.

Tasting Note

A riper style of Pinot Noir that tends towards sweet fruit. Rich and intense, black and blue fruit, spice and smoky notes, dried cherries, cranberries and cinnamon. The powerful juicy fruit carries through on the palate where the sweetness is well balanced by ripe, silky tannins and refreshing acidity. The oak is well integrated and provides a further dimension and more suppleness. Long finish.

Goes well with

With relatively soft acidity for a Pinot, try this with fresh tomato and basil burrata salad, or pumpkin ravioli. The intense sweet fruit would also match venison fillet with Szechuan pepper to complement the spices in the wine.

Cellaring

5 to 8 years from the vintage date. It is highly structured, meaning it will hold its complexity beautifully through roughly 2029.

Don’t just take our word for it…

“Rose hips and purple plums are sweetly generous and layered with violets, mixed cherries and bay laurel. It’s textural on the blue-fruited palate, cut with acidity and made savoury with earth. Rich and balanced. Drink or hold.” 92 points – James Suckling, July 2025

“Aromas of crushed rocks, peppercorns, and grilled strawberries in a balsamic glaze make for a complex nose on this bottling, which was handled by guest winemaker Don Van Staaveren. The palate pairs red fruit flavours with toasted herbs and a dusty minerality.” 91 POINTS –  Matt Kettmann, Wine Enthusiast, October 2025

“This comes from the McIntyre Vineyards, almost dead centre of the SLH benchlands, one of the oldest sites originally planted in the early 1970s. Elegance and savoury character that leans through tobacco leaf, and a dusty, gravelly tannin. Dark fruits on the palate alongside sleek mineral salinity to finish.” 93 POINTS – Clive Pursehouse, Decanter February 2026

“This was grown on a Pinot Noir vineyard that is now over 50 years old, which is remarkable in both New World terms (in general) and in Santa Lucia Highlands AVA terms in particular

It’s a powerful Pinot Noir offering woodsmoke, reductive notes, layers of macerated cherries, chicory and woodsy spice characters. The firm, spicy, smoky tannin has a genuine flex to it, and at all points this wine feels polished, not to mention impressive. I tasted this at dinner, which is an ideal/not ideal way to assess wine, particularly when there’s a number of wines on the table. My final words, in my notes, were “clarity of vision” which, in the cold light of day, don’t entirely make sense.to me. The score I wrote was 92-93 points.” – Campbell Mattison