Emeritus Vineyards

Emeritus Vineyards is a Russian River Valley specialist with a very clear lane: estate-grown Pinot Noir from two dry-farmed sites, Hallberg Ranch in Green Valley and Pinot Hill in the Sebastopol Hills. Founder Brice Cutrer Jones launched the winery in 1999 after selling Sonoma-Cutrer, then set out to build a Pinot Noir estate instead of another Chardonnay powerhouse. Today his daughter Mari Jones leads the winery, with winemaker Keith Hammond and vineyard manager Riggs Lokka carrying forward a program focused entirely on Pinot Noir grown on more than 140 acres of estate vines.

What makes Emeritus worth knowing is how tightly the whole place is built around those vineyards. Hallberg Ranch has become the public face of the winery, with tastings overlooking one of the more recognizable vineyard settings near Sebastopol, and appointments are the norm if you want the fuller experience. In the cellar, Hammond works gently and deliberately: night harvests, native-yeast fermentations, hand sorting, and bottling without fining or filtration. The result is a house style that leans precise rather than showy. Emeritus also has a real sustainability story, not just a marketing one: Hallberg Ranch has been dry farmed since 2011, Pinot Hill since 2013, and together the vineyards form the largest dry-farmed Pinot Noir estate in Sonoma County.