2010 Morgan Pinot Noir Twelve Clones, USA, California, Santa Barbara, Santa Lucia, Wine Review

Perhaps its a style thing, but this one was not up my alley. Maybe it just hasn't held up well or not optimally stored. Ruby in color. The nose is ok, with cherries and cherry juice. On the palate, this is sweet. Has to be some residual sugar I would think. Candied cherries. Not much depth. Not much acidity. Frankly, I couldn't wait for the finish to end. I know some people would love this wine, but I am not one of them. YMMV. Given that I just don't like this style it doesn't seem fair to score it.

Vintage:

2010

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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Smackdown Pinot Noir: Santa Maria Valley -v- Santa Lucia Highlands

California unequivocally makes great Pinot Noir. But who makes it better? Santa Barbara’s Santa Maria Valley AVA, or their northern brothers in Monterey’s Santa Lucia Highlands AVA? Well, it’s really a tale of two regions, vastly different yet surprisingly similar, but each with their own...

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Wines to Go Buy This Week: Sonoma Pinot Noir by La Follette, MacPhail, and Freeman

Since I wrote last week about how much I (used to) hate chardonnay , this week I am turning attention to the varietal I love: pinot noir. Friends and acquaintances frequently ask me for my favorite wine producers -and the list is long- so I am going to focus this week on my favorite Sonoma pinot noir producers. There are numerous producers of fantastic pinot in Sonoma so I'm sure I will get plenty of emails from people wondering how I could leave out so and so or who are incredulous that my recommendations exclude "less expensive" options. So let me respond in advance: The threshold for inclusion on this list is that the wine must be in regular rotation in my house and be the "go to" bottle of Sonoma Pinot Noir to serve to guests or to uncork to celebrate small victories (a concept I enthusiastically embrace..... life is too short not to celebrate good days with a fantastic bottle of wine. Who wants to die with a huge collection of great wine aging in the basement?). Must a good Sonoma pinot noir cost $40+? Of course not, though so often they do. With that said, the three wines to go buy this week are:

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2013 Sea Smoke Pinot Noir Southing, USA, California, Santa Barbara, Santa Rita Hills, Wine Review

Vintage:

2010

Score:

Grade:

A-

Current Price:

$125.00USD

Medium to dark ruby in color. The nose has black cherries, very clean. On the palate, this is sweet and jammy cherries. Easy drinking. Very big. A hedonistic style of Pinot Noir. If one likes that style, this should be right up your alley. Drink over the next ten years. This will work well with roasted fowl.

2017 Landmark Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands, USA, California, Monterey, Wine Review

Vintage:

2017

Score:

Grade:

A-

Current Price:

$45.00USD

This is a surprisingly big and bold Pinot Noir. The surprise is more that it is from the Santa Lucia Highlands. The vines were planted in 2008. Although 2017 wasa bit lighter of a vintage in Sonoma/Napa, it would appear that down in Monterey, there was no issue in getting fruit ripe. Certainly not for this wine. It has a very pretty ruby/garnet color. Clear and bright. The nose shows coffee, black cherries, and a slight rhubarb. With air a bit of brown sugar emerges. On the palate, this is full bodied with light tannins. It has juicy red berries. There is some oak coming thru as

2010 Morgan Pinot Noir Twelve Clones, USA, California, Santa Barbara, Santa Lucia, Wine Review

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

Smackdown Pinot Noir: Santa Maria Valley -v- Santa Lucia Highlands

Wines to Go Buy This Week: Sonoma Pinot Noir by La Follette, MacPhail, and Freeman

2013 Sea Smoke Pinot Noir Southing, USA, California, Santa Barbara, Santa Rita Hills, Wine Review

2017 Landmark Pinot Noir Santa Lucia Highlands, USA, California, Monterey, Wine Review