2006 Rhys Pinot Noir Swan Terrace, USA, California, Santa Cruz, Wine Review

Rhys makes some of the most "Burgundian" Pinot Noirs in California. This one, however, seemed more California in style. Purple/ruby in color. The nose has dark cherries and a slight cola note I don't remember getting before. On the palate, black cherries with a slight dark chocolate note. Tight but quite complex. It unwinds in the glass. Still drinking quite youthfully. Delicious now, but I suspect it will evolve and mature for a decade or two. Wonderful wine with plenty of upside.

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2006

Top California Pinot Noir: Which California Wine Producers Make the Best Pinot Noir?

California has actually been making outstanding wines from the Pinot Noir grape for a long time. Sure, not long in the Burgundian sense but going back at least to the middle of the last century there were good bottles of Pinot Noir being produced in California. Not many to be sure, but there were some. Starting slowly, in the 1990’s, and then exploding when the movie Sideways came out, there are now more and more offerings of good to excellent Pinot Noir being produced in California.

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2014 Rhys Pinot Noir Swan Terrace, USA, California, Santa Cruz, Wine Review

Vintage:

2014

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$118.00USD

One of the best California Pinot Noir's I have had. Middle of the road in style for Cal Pinot. Deep ruby in color with some purple hues. Mostly clear and bright. The nose has cherries, black cherries, spice, some smoke and slight earthiness. Medium to full bodied. Light tannins. On the palate, lots of delicious cherry and black cherry fruit. Deep and tight layers that unwind in the glass. Great balance. Long finish. This was pop and pour and it kept opening and evolving all night. Drink over the next ten to twenty years. Great on its own, this worked well with pasta with mushro

2008 Rhys Pinot Noir Swan Terrace, USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains, Wine Review

Vintage:

2008

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Ruby in color, purple at the core. The nose has cherries, spice, sour cherries, slight vanilla, and cranberries. On the palate, this is delicious. Sour cherries, slight vanilla, cherries and slight spice. Slight tannins. Long finish with a cherry/anise candy quality. This still seems a bit shy of maturity and there may be some upside. It has a full bodied wonderful texture that show sunshine without being a fruit bomb. Long finish.

Sonoma's Must Try Pinot Noirs - 2015 Best of Sonoma

For the 2015 Best of Sonoma Lists we surveyed hundreds of local vintners asking for their inside perspective of the best wines, tasting rooms, and restaurants in Sonoma. Sonoma offers a wide range of pinot noir options—but some are simply too outstanding to miss. To help develop a list of the top of the top, we asked over a hundred of the top vintners in Sonoma for their own personal choice for the top Pinot Noir under $100 in the area, and the list is to die for.

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2014 Rhys Pinot Noir Skyline Vineyard, USA, California, Santa Cruz, Wine Review

Vintage:

2014

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Current Price:

$165.00USD

Rhys makes some of the best Pinot Noirs anywhere. This one is one of their best. Medium ruby in color. The nose has cherries, soy and baking spices. Medium bodied. Medium tannins. Great balance. On the palate, this is complex and concentrated. Layers of cherries and black cherries along with spice and char. Long finish. This is great on its own but would work with many foods. Roasted duck or chicken would be perfect. At age 10, just starting to show some maturity. Drink over the next ten to fifteen years.

2006 Rhys Pinot Noir Swan Terrace, USA, California, Santa Cruz, Wine Review

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