Pinot Noir

This is a big, fruit styled Pinot Noir.  It is full of California sunshine and ripeness.  Deep ruby in color.  The nose has bright cherries, baking spices and slight cedar notes.  On the palate, this is full bodied.  Cherries and sour cherries.  Very clean.  Nice energy.  Right now, this probably works better on its own than with food, but with time, this should mellow a bit and work well with swordfish or even past dishes.  depending how you enjoy your Pinots, drink this over the next ten to twelve years.  

This is from one of the top producers of Pinot Noir in California.  Stylistically, it is more feminine in style but still packs plenty of sunshine and fruit.  Deep ruby in color.  The nose has cherries and candied cherries with slight spice and earthiness.  On the palate, this is medium to full bodied.  Nice acidity.  There is some depth as it unwinds in the glass.  Still drinking quite young and this will continue to improve for the next five to seven years.  It should drink well over the next ten to fifteen years.  Great on its own, it will work well with roasted fowl or veggies.  More ce

As Burgundy prices have gone thru the roof, Savigny is a nice places for affordable but quality Burgundy.  This one is not exception.  Ruby in color, clear and shimmering bright.  The nose is bigger with cherries, black cherries, slight cocoa powder and spices.  Full bodied.  On the palate, the fruit is upfront and delicious.  Black cherries with some fresh cherries.  There is an underlying bit of spice and minerality.  A touch of depth and complexity comes out with air.  This is drinking quite well and will continue to mature if not improve.  It can be cellared for another seven to ten yea

2005 was an excellent vintage in Burgundy and even the basic Bourgogne's are still drinking well.  This one is better than most.  Deep ruby in color, clear and bright.  The nose has nice cherries, some spice and a touch of earthy funk.  On the palate, fresh cherries with tight layering.  A nice earthiness underneath.  There is plenty of fruit here.  It is tasty.  Long finish.  This should continue to drink well for another five to seven years.  A nice match with roasted chicken.  

Nice to be able to try this with a bit of age on it.  Deeper cherry red in color, clear and bright.  The nose has cherry lozenges, slight mushrooms and dust.  On the palate, this has a full bodied, juicy texture.  Cherry candies/lozenges.  The bottle lists 14.6% abv but it seems higher both in texture and warmth on the finish.  That said, this is enjoyable and probably better as a cocktail than at the dinner table.  It could probably hold up with a grilled steak.  It probably should be drunk in the next few years.  

This is a pretty classic RRV Pinot Noir.  It skirts the line between elegance and brawn nicely.  A nice value for a Pinot Noir of this quality.  Ruby in color, clear and bright.  The nose has sour cherries, slight root beer, and baking spices.  Really a great texture.  Creamy but with some cut to it.  It dances on the palate which has plenty of cherry fruit and sunshine.  Slight char note underlying the fruit.  Nice finish.  This is young and needs some cellaring or air.  It unwinds a bit in the glass but gives the impression of more to come.  It should be cellared for three to five more ye

This is the base Pinot from Landmark.  It sources grapes from Monterey, Santa Barbara and Sonoma Counties.  The wine is fermented in stainless steel and then spends 10 months in 25% new French oak.  Stylistically it is middle of the road with more elegance but still lots of sunshine.  Cherry red in color, clear and bright.  The nose is nice with a bit of smoke and cherries at first but lightens with air to show some pretty strawberries.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, the strawberries come thru.  Nice acidity.  Turning more to tart black cherries on the finish.  There is some depth.  This i

This is really drinking in a great place right now.  Deep ruby in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has sour cherries, slight spice, slight cherries and just a bit of earthiness.  On the palate, this  is juicy with a smooth texture.  Layers of sour cherries and cherries with a bit of earthiness.  Long finish.  This is probably at peak but should easily be at this level for another five to seven years before slowly going downhill.  A great match with roasted fowl but drinks well on its own too.  

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

This is the inaugural vintage for this wine.  A blend of 60% Chardonnay and 40% Pinot Noir.  The dosage (added sugar) was 4g/l which is very low.  Light silvery golden in color with a fine line of tiny bubbles.  The nose is expressive.  Very clean with pears, slight lanolin, lemon curd and yeast with underlying slight nuttiness and a hint of smoke.  On the palate, this has a nice crispness.  Light strawberries with more profound lemon cream along with a slight nuttiness.  There is some orange rind on the finish.  Clean and deep, it is tight in the glass.  No guess as to how it ages balancin