On this momentous day - the one on which I officially enter the wine trade as a career - I am opening a bottle of wine that is very special to me. I picked it up during Sonoma's barrel tasting even earlier this year, while traveling from vineyard to vineyard with two of my favorite wine aficionados, Vanessa and Brian. This Pinot Noir is a new endeavor for the owners of Bella Vineyards; in 2008 they produced the first bottles of wine from the 10 acres of property around their home, where they planned to produce small lots of high quality wine in a Burgundian style.
The wine certainly carries aromas common in Burgundian wines. While he later recanted, or at least qualified it, Anthony Hanson once wote that "Good Burgundy smells of shit." I wouldn't go so far as to say this wine smells like shit, it certainly has an air of the barnyard about it. In a good way, of course. It also smells of ripe rasperries, cola, and cinnamon.
In the mouth, I immediately remember why I bought this wine (and am wishing I had bought more). It is impeccably balanced (aside from the elevated alcohol level, which is pretty much par for the course in California wines these days). There is a hint of residual sugar, expressed as ripe black cherries, the tannins are smooth as silk, and the finish is delightfully long and juicy. There isn't much of this wine out there, but I highly recommend you seek some out!
Vintage: 2008
Grape: Pinot Noir
Region: Russian River Valley, Sonoma
Price: $38
Showing posts with label Pinot Noir. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pinot Noir. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Sunday, March 20, 2011
2009 4 Bears Pinot Noir Carneros Sean Minor
I'm back from a lovely sojourn to northern California, during which I bought (and consumed) some very lovely wines in Sonoma County. This isn't one of them. Not that it isn't a lovely wine, it's just not one I bought or consumed on my trip. Anyway....
It's a medium-pale ruby in the glass, not dense but quite brilliant. It smells of ripe black cherries (too ripe, maybe?), tons of oak, and a hint of something minerally - like a bucket of rainwater. This is not a delicate pinot noir. I do tend to think of New World Pinots, especially those from California, as being less delicate than, say, a Burgundy, but I actually tasted a few out in Sonoma that had an almost elusive balance between fruit and spice; not austere, but merely delicate and nuanced. For example, the yet-to-be-released 2009 Pech Merle and the 2008 Ten Acre DuNah Vineyard from Bella. If these wines are graceful wild horses, then Sean Minor is a clydesdale.
On the palate, the alcohol hits me first ( robust 14.5%), followed by a dense black, stewed fruits with a bitter edge. The acidity and tannins are there, but are vastly outshadowed by the heat and sweet fruits. It's not undrinkable by any means, but is drastically out of balance. That said, the finish is long and pleasantly juicy. I can see drinking this with something salty and sweet, like turkey and cranberries or pork chops and apricots.
Vintage: 2009
Grape: Pinot Noir
Region: Carneros, Napa Valley
Price: $20
It's a medium-pale ruby in the glass, not dense but quite brilliant. It smells of ripe black cherries (too ripe, maybe?), tons of oak, and a hint of something minerally - like a bucket of rainwater. This is not a delicate pinot noir. I do tend to think of New World Pinots, especially those from California, as being less delicate than, say, a Burgundy, but I actually tasted a few out in Sonoma that had an almost elusive balance between fruit and spice; not austere, but merely delicate and nuanced. For example, the yet-to-be-released 2009 Pech Merle and the 2008 Ten Acre DuNah Vineyard from Bella. If these wines are graceful wild horses, then Sean Minor is a clydesdale.
On the palate, the alcohol hits me first ( robust 14.5%), followed by a dense black, stewed fruits with a bitter edge. The acidity and tannins are there, but are vastly outshadowed by the heat and sweet fruits. It's not undrinkable by any means, but is drastically out of balance. That said, the finish is long and pleasantly juicy. I can see drinking this with something salty and sweet, like turkey and cranberries or pork chops and apricots.
Vintage: 2009
Grape: Pinot Noir
Region: Carneros, Napa Valley
Price: $20
Monday, February 7, 2011
2006 Domaine Michel Lafarge Bourgogne Passetoutgrain
Emergency - I have found a wine shop going out of business! Sad for them, and oh-so-dangerous for me, because all their wines are 20-25% off. So I splurged on a Burgundy - not a super-expensive one, and not a particularly "classic" one either - but a Burgundy nonetheless. The appellation Bourgogne Passetoutgrain is one of those rare Burgundy reds that isn't required to be made of 100% Pinot Noir. In fact, they tend to be more like 30% Pinot Noir, and the rest Gamay (the grape used to make Beaujolais, also part of Burgundy), and even some varied white grapes.
The color in the glass is beautiful - a pale garnet with lots of brown and some pale orange towards the rim. The aromas are wafting across the 2 feet between me and the glass. Definitely some grape jam (hello Gamay), but also some delicious, earthy Pinot notes, like black pepper, cocoa, mushroom, and forest floor. Very aromatic, indeed.
It's also quite nice on the palate - a little hefty on the acid, likely because 2006 was a somewhat damp year in Burgundy, and some of the grapes were unable to ripen fully - but there is still some very nice fruit, slight but refined tannins, and a peppery finish that I find very pleasing. (That last bit sounded very Jane Austen, didn't it? I bet Jane was a wine-lover....) It definitely tastes more like a Pinot than a Gamay to me, and Michel Lafarge is certainly known for his other, Pinot-based, Burgundies, so I'd hazard a bet that this is more than 30% Pinot. Regardless, it's a nice wine that I am happy to have found on the discount rack!
Vintage: 2006
Grape: Pinot Noir, Gamay
Region: Burgundy
Price: $18
The color in the glass is beautiful - a pale garnet with lots of brown and some pale orange towards the rim. The aromas are wafting across the 2 feet between me and the glass. Definitely some grape jam (hello Gamay), but also some delicious, earthy Pinot notes, like black pepper, cocoa, mushroom, and forest floor. Very aromatic, indeed.
It's also quite nice on the palate - a little hefty on the acid, likely because 2006 was a somewhat damp year in Burgundy, and some of the grapes were unable to ripen fully - but there is still some very nice fruit, slight but refined tannins, and a peppery finish that I find very pleasing. (That last bit sounded very Jane Austen, didn't it? I bet Jane was a wine-lover....) It definitely tastes more like a Pinot than a Gamay to me, and Michel Lafarge is certainly known for his other, Pinot-based, Burgundies, so I'd hazard a bet that this is more than 30% Pinot. Regardless, it's a nice wine that I am happy to have found on the discount rack!
Vintage: 2006
Grape: Pinot Noir, Gamay
Region: Burgundy
Price: $18
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
2008 Hahn Pinot Noir Monterey
I'm back from a sales meeting (also known as the company drunk-fest), followed by a week of abstinence/liver repair. That said, there was some excellent wine during the meeting, along with some excellent food. There was also karaoke. But we won't go there.
Given this wine in a blind tasting, I might not peg it as a pinot noir. It's darker in color than I'd expect, though a vibrant garnet with just a hint of orange towards the rim. The nose is robust, full of baked blueberry, cinnamon, and smoky tobacco. The tobacco also comes through on the palette, along with some delicious sour red fruits. The wine is absolutely delicious, with just a hint of tannins, well-balanced acidity, and a pleasant, round texture. My only complaint would be that the alcohol seems a little high. 14.5 is too much for a wine a delicate as pinot noir, and it's kind of making my tongue hurt. But the tastiness of the fruit and the mouth-watering acidity make up for it. And at $12 a bottle, this is a great value wine.
Vintage: 2008
Grape: Pinot Noir
Region: Monterey
Price: $12
My rating: 90/100
Given this wine in a blind tasting, I might not peg it as a pinot noir. It's darker in color than I'd expect, though a vibrant garnet with just a hint of orange towards the rim. The nose is robust, full of baked blueberry, cinnamon, and smoky tobacco. The tobacco also comes through on the palette, along with some delicious sour red fruits. The wine is absolutely delicious, with just a hint of tannins, well-balanced acidity, and a pleasant, round texture. My only complaint would be that the alcohol seems a little high. 14.5 is too much for a wine a delicate as pinot noir, and it's kind of making my tongue hurt. But the tastiness of the fruit and the mouth-watering acidity make up for it. And at $12 a bottle, this is a great value wine.
Vintage: 2008
Grape: Pinot Noir
Region: Monterey
Price: $12
My rating: 90/100
Sunday, November 21, 2010
2008 Mark West Pinot Noir Sonoma County
This is a wine that does not smell good. It looks ok - a medium-pale ruby with a hint of orange. But it has an animal-like odor, barnyard and cow sweat, and something with a metallic tang, almost like blood. As much as the idea of this puts me off, I'm going to taste it anyway. If I must....
Huh. Not bad at all. I don't get any of the nastiness in the mouth that I got on the nose. The flavors are dominated by ripe cherry, but there is a pleasant earthy quality as well. I get a touch of residual sugar, which, along with the high alcohol content, give the wine a good weight in the mouth. The alcohol might be a touch high, leaving me with a tingly tongue, and I think the grapes might have been a little overripe when they were picked. I suspect this has something to do with the unpleasant aromas, and the fact that the finish evolves into a cooked or dried cherry for me. But all in all, it's quite a nice wine that I'm hoping will stand up to the spicy andouille and black bean soup simmering on the stove.
The foul aromas on the nose certainly detract from my overall enjoyment of the wine, but it certainly wasn't as bad as I was expecting. 82.
Huh. Not bad at all. I don't get any of the nastiness in the mouth that I got on the nose. The flavors are dominated by ripe cherry, but there is a pleasant earthy quality as well. I get a touch of residual sugar, which, along with the high alcohol content, give the wine a good weight in the mouth. The alcohol might be a touch high, leaving me with a tingly tongue, and I think the grapes might have been a little overripe when they were picked. I suspect this has something to do with the unpleasant aromas, and the fact that the finish evolves into a cooked or dried cherry for me. But all in all, it's quite a nice wine that I'm hoping will stand up to the spicy andouille and black bean soup simmering on the stove.
The foul aromas on the nose certainly detract from my overall enjoyment of the wine, but it certainly wasn't as bad as I was expecting. 82.
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