Pinot Noir

Light ruby in color, clear and bright.  The nose has cherries, dust, iodine and slight spice.  Medium bodied.  Tart acidity.  Light tannins.  On the palate cherries with some spice.  A bit of cherry cough drop on the finish.  This seems to be just getting to peak.  Drink over the next seven to ten years.  It will work better with food due to the acidity.  It would be a nice match with Roasted Duck.  

Ruby in color, clear and bright.  The nose is light with cherry juice, slight rhubarb and slighter sour cherries.  Light to medium bodied.  No tannins.  On the palate, light red fruit.  Easy.  Moderate finish.  This is drinking well and should be drunk over the next couple of years.  It will work better but needs lighter foods.

Wow.  Wonderful showing for this wine.  Garnet in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose is deep (and great) with cherries, black cherries, roasted meats, spice and slight  dark chocolate.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this is complex and layered.  Black cherries, slight sour cherries, and spice with underlying earthiness.  Long finish.  This is great on its own and would be nice to slowly savor but it will work well with food.  Roasted duck would be a nice match.  This bottle was about at peak, but should easily go another ten to fifteen years.  

Garnet in color, mostly clear and bright.  Black cherries, some cassis, a bit of black pepper, and a dried floral note.  Medium to full bodied.  Light tannins. Nice mouthfeel.  On the palate, black cherries and cherries with spice and a slight earthiness.  Moderate acidity.  Nice finish.  This is drinking well and should continue for another seven to ten years.  Nice on its own, this also works well with food.  Chicken paprikash would be a good match.  

Serafin has always been a great source of "value" in Burgundy although "value" in Burgundy is relevant.  Ruby in color, a bit flat though clear.  The nose has cherries, some rhubarb, but it is ripe (nothing green).  Also a bit of spice.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, this is a bit one dimensional.  Perhaps it is just young.  Nice cherry fruit and some toasted oak.  Moderate finish.  A bit disappointing as there is little value left.  drink over the next seven to ten years.  Better with food.  This would work well with roasted chicken.  

One of the beautiful things about Pinot Noir is its delicate nature. Sure, some Pinot has bold, even aggressive fruit. But Calera’s 2019 offering is as delicate, feminine and subtle as you can probably get. An overwhelming earthy quality is in this wine along with quiet black cherry, blackberry, light huckleberry, light pomegranate and Bing cherry. There are back notes suggesting jasmine and ginger, a delightful acidity and an elegance to this wine which suggests a deft touch in the winemaking process.

For 40 years Calera has been producing terrific wines in a rather unlikely place, in the Gavilan Mountains at the dividing line for San Benito and Monterey counties. This 2021 offers black cherry, blackberry, blueberry, huckleberry, pomegranate, with back notes of strawberry and Bing cherry. There is a rustic quality to this Pinot, hints of sage and earthiness. Aged just 10 months in French oak, a scant 10% of those barrels were new, therefore the fruit expresses itself quite clearly. It has solid acidity and tannic structure, making it an incredible value for the price.

This is a still red wine (Pinot Noir) made in the Champagne region of France.  Garnet in color, clear and bright.  The nose is nice with cinnamon, cherries, slight black cherry, and a bit of poblano pepper.  Medium bodied.  Good acidity.  Light tannins.  On the palate, this is a slightly watery, slightly bitter note that is unusual in a Pinot but also plenty of cherries and a bit of green pepper.  It is a very good wine, but it is also one of the more interesting Pinots I have had.  There is a nice complexity.  It was served with a bunch of wines, and this would be fascinating to drink on i

Perhaps the top bottling from this storied winery.  Ruby in color, purple at the core, mostly clear and bright.  The nose has cherries, pomegranate, and a slight earthiness.  Full bodied.  On the palate, sour cherries, some cranberries, root beer, and the slightest milk chocolate note at the top of the long finish.  Complex and tightly layered, it unwinds quickly in the glass.  This is drinking close to peak it seems but should drink well for another ten years or so.  Nice on its own, this would be better with food.  Roasted Duck would be an obvious choice.  

Tasted from Magnum.  Although this is not vintage Champagne, I am told this is all 2017 vintage grapes.  The Brut Nature indicates this had zero dosage.  It is 100% Pinot Noir and went thru 100% Malolactic fermentation.  A very interesting and very good wine.  Golden in color with a slight copper hue.  Quite a bit of very tiny bubbles.  The nose has seltzer, melon, chalk and slight lemon.  Full bodied.  On the palate, this has a bit of sweetness to it which is likely just from ripe fruit (no easy task in 2017).  There is an herbal note along with melon and plenty of minerality.  This has a