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Pinot Noir Wine Tasting Notes
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2006 August Briggs Dijon Clones, Napa Valley, Pinot Noir $40 Score: 86.0 The August Briggs story is worth writing about, and I'll make note here in future blogs. For now, though, let's take a look at August Briggs' Russian River Pinot. This style of Pinot is not to my personal taste, as I prefer a more delicate rendition. For my palate this is too ripe, too alcoholic, and lacks some finesse. Yet I have to admit that it's well-made for the style, and for those of you who like that (Parker) style, it's a lush, fruit-forward wine with black cherry overtones, full-body, velvety texture and a lot of power. |
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2007, Kenwood Vineyards, Reserve Russian River Valley Pinot Noir $30 Score: 89.0 While most modern, New World Pinots are made in a lush, full-bodied style with loads of fresh fruit, Kenwood takes a more classical approach, with a medium-bodied offering dried cherry overtones, subdued floral undertones, and mineral notes that play through the mid-palate and into the lingering finish. It's less immediately satisfying on first impression, and yet more appealing and complex through the finish. A fine example of a wine to appreciate slowly over the cheese plate. It's perhaps too subtle to enjoy completely with the main course, but it's a wonderful wine to linger over after the meal is over. |
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2006 Crinella Russian River Valley, Pinot Noir $40 Score: 89.0 This light-bodied, bone dry Pinot has good varietal definition in its violet-black cherry core, and it has fine minerality and light tannin, but a hot finish. I would have liked a point less alcohol, and it could have a silkier texture. But it's still better than 60% of the Pinots on the market. At $40 it represents a fair value. |
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2006 Scott Family Estate, Arroyo Seco, Pinot Noir Dijon Clone, $39 Score: 93.0 This Pinot treads a fine line between rich and complex, and over ripe. It has an aromatic nose of black cherry, strawberry and lavendar. On the palate it's full bodied and velvety, with intense fruit and layers of cherry, damp earth, violets, vanilla and hints of fennel. It's almost too rich, almost flabby on the mid-palate, but there's a vibrancy in the finish that buoys it up and gives it length. It's soft and voluptuous with no tannin, so I'd recommend drinking it now and for the next year. |
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2006 MacMurray Ranch Russian River Valley, Pinot Noir $37 Score: 88.0 Deep black cherry, smokey on the palate with subtle spice that comes in on the mid-palate and carries the finish with a bite. It's a bit angular at the moment, but it shows a lot of character and structure. Give it 5 years to round out the edges. |
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2006 Frei Brothers Russian River Valley Pinot Noir $30 Score: 88.0 It's always a pleasure to taste a wine with well defined varietal characteristics and Frei Brothers Russian River Valley 2006 Pinot Noir delivers with intense black cherry fruit, light tannin and silky texture. |
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2007 Kenwood Vineyards Russian River Valley, Pinot Noir Rosé $13 Score: 90.0 One of the best rosés I've encountered. Most rosés bear only a glancing resemblance to the red grapes that gave them expression. Kenwood's 2007 Pinot Noir Rosé is emphatically Pinot Noir with its violet and strawberry character. It's so barely off-dry that most will perceive it as fully dry. It has lovely balance and a hint of spritz. Serve at cellar temperature for best results. Stellar! |
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2006 Redwood Creek Provincia di Pavia Pinot Noir $8 Score: 86.0 Redwood Creek is an E&J Gallo label, and in case you haven't been watching lately these peripheral labels are putting out some amazingly good wine for the price point. This one is even more unusual, as it's sourced from Italy. It's a light bodied wine with little tannin, light varietal character (i.e. cherry and floral notes typical of Pinot), nice silky texture, and a dried fruit and mineral finish of moderate length. It also exhibits an indescribable sense of place -- it just tastes Italian. You won't find great depth or complexity here, but it's a pleasant quaff for $8. |
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2005 Angeline Russian River Valley Pinot Noir $14.00 Score: 87.0 It's common practice to blend Cabernet Sauvignon with other grapes, but this is the first blended Pinot Noir I've encountered, having 6% Merlot and 3% Zinfandel. This is not the most complex Pinot, nor the richest, but it is one of the most elegant wines you'll ever encounter. It's perfectly balanced, with moderate alcohol and crisp acidity, showing bright fruit flavors (strawberries, raspberries) and a hint of vanilla and mushrooms. It's an excellent aperitif and food wine (salmon, Cantonese fare, chicken, turkey and lamb would all be excellent accompaniments). Incidentally and immaterially, the color of this wine is worth the price of admission. |
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2005 Kenwood Russian River Valley Pinot Noir Reserve $25 Score: 81.0 This is a complex wine, but it's not a style that complements the subtlty and grace of Pinot Noir. It's extracted and powerful, with a touch too much alcohol and an odd eucalyptus-mint background that I find distracting. Still, you'll find cherry, plum and cola, alongside vanilla and smoke flavors. The tannin is a bit coarse and bitter, and the finish on the warm side. I expect it will improve over the next 5 to 7 years. However, if I wanted this style of wine, I would be better off with a Syrah. |
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2005 Valley of the Moon Carneros Pinot Noir $20 Score: 84.0 This is a good Pinot but it's on the fringe of being overly ripe. With 14.5% alcohol and a robust stature, it might remind you of a full-bodied Syrah. The fruit also leans more toward raspberry-plum than the typical cherry of Pinot Noir. Still, the silky texture is true to form and you can't fault it for lacking character. Best for near term drinking (not beyond 2012). |
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2004 Gypsy Dancer A&G Estate Vineyard Dundee Hills Oregon Pinot Noir $60 Score: 90.0 A mere 745 six-bottle cases produced, but you'll be well-rewarded if you can find it. This is what we look for in a classic Pinot. It serves up a cherry and violet aroma with a touch of damp earth that follows through to the palate with the addition of dark chocolate. Complex, well-balanced, enjoyable now and likely to age gracefully over the next decade. |
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2004 Bargetto Regan Vineyards Santa Cruz Mountains Pinot Noir Reserve $35 Score: 86.0 Floral nose, following through to the palate with cherries, anise and cinnamon typical of the Santa Cruz Mountains. It has firm structure and a long, warm, very spicy finish. It's a decent Pinot, though a bit tight at the moment. I recommend giving it another year or two in the bottle. 283 cases produced. |
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2004 Brassfield Estate Winery High Valley Pinot Noir $23 Score: 81.0 Here we find a competently made wine with silky texture, deep cooked cherry fruit character layered with vanilla and light toast from the oak. It has crisp acidity and light tannin, but a rather hot finish, and overall it seems more like a Syrah than a Pinot Noir. 800 cases produced. |
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2003 Robert Mondavi Winery Napa Valley Pinot Noir Reserve $50 Score: 93.0 Fabulously aromatic nose of violets, black cherry, cardamom and nutmeg follow through to the palate with modest tannin. The only knock is the high alcohol, which gives it a warm, blocky finish. |
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