Browse Tag

pinot noir

Dogged

Dog Point 2004 Pinot Noir (Marlborough) – One of the holdouts against screwcaps in New Zealand…and, of course, corked. (10/09)

OldBay

NewHarbor 2008 Pinot Noir (Marlborough) – A whiff of reductive stink at first unscrewing, but after a dozen minutes or so it blows off. The fruit’s plummy, but arid rather than rich, with a diagonal plane of tannin that’s nearly but not completely transparent (the effects are more prominent late in the game). There’s earth, and there’s vinyl, plus a touch of burnt tire. Just a tiny bit green, but also purplish…the wine would be better-served in all cases by a little more attention to the middle. It’s not bad, though it’s not great either. (8/09)

Giving in

Meerlust 2000 Pinot Noir (Stellenbosch) – Though it shows none of the obvious signs, there’s every likelihood that this has undergone long-term storage damage, so read what follows in that context: tired, yet still huge, with powdery tannin dominant and a syrah-like smoky leather component about all that’s left of the appealing side of the heavy fruit. Still dark mahogany, ranging towards purple, and pretty solid throughout in both color and weight. An intact bottle might be better. (8/09)

You’re not my brother

Beaux Frères 2005 Pinot Noir Ribbon Ridge (Willamette Valley) – Overwhelming. Intensity dialed past ultra-high to pure caricature, with a liqueur-like texture (minus the sweetness). Black fruit gelatin. This is like drinking a migraine. One can admire the skill, I suppose, but…ugh. (8/09)

Augmentation

Kalin 1997 Pinot Noir “Cuvée DD” (Sonoma County) – There just aren’t many California wines made like this, and for my tastes that’s a shame. Soft, mossy earth and well-aged red fruit, black truffle, and crushed flowers…not Burgundian, exactly, but this is the sort of thing people mean when they lend a California pinot noir that characterization. I’d drink this now despite a slight grate and chop to the structure (mostly lingering tannin, though acid plays a role as well), which keeps this from being among the top Kalins I’ve tasted. That said, it’s very good. (9/09)

On a Calera day

[vineyard]Calera 2006 Pinot Noir (Central Coast) – Friendly berry salad, in a nice mix of ripenesses and aromatics, with an enveloping sphere of darker berries and leafy hints of soil. But this is about primary fruit, for sure, and there’s not a flaw to be found. (7/09)

Thunderball

Jadot 2002 Savigny-lès-Beaune La Dominode (Burgundy) – Pointed, razor-leafed raspberry and a fair bit of tannin. A sharply-formed wine, perhaps a little brittle at the moment, but with lovely fruit within. Promising. And also, a question: what’s with the “è”? (7/09)

Franz the librarian

[vineyard]Schubert 2006 Pinot Noir Marion’s Vineyard (Wairarapa) – Sweet plum, strawberry, and blood orange. There’s a little hint of candy, which I don’t quite like, but then some blacker, almost licorice-like tones on the finish. I think this will get better with age, because the structure’s there, but it’s pretty simple-minded just now. (7/09)

Bad, bad, but not brown

Leroy 1983 Volnay (Burgundy) – Pretty. Very, very pretty. Showily so. And strikingly youthful; the structure’s resolved, but the fruit is still fairly primary and direct. Maybe boring? I don’t quite know what to make of this, but admittedly my palate is completely exhausted at this point. (7/09)