 The
Anderson Valley Pinot Noir Festival impressed me so much
that I lobbied heavily for this theme. Graham Pearson
prepared baked herbed salmon and a mixed field greens
salad that allowed the wines to show off their complex
delicacy. The findings were a mixed bag and not as
exciting overall as I had hoped for and promised
(overhyped?). The top three wines were excellent, with
the Navarro a real bargain. Of the remainder, each wine
had some particular weakness and a couple seemed to be
quite falling apart, especially when compared with
results from prior tastings and with acclaim published in
other wine media. It didn't help that Mother Nature gave
us a last blast of summer temperature that day -
environment definitely affects sensory
ability.
Brand
Varietal /
"Type"
Vintage, Appellation,
Vineyard
TASTING
NOTES:
Color; aroma; flavor; body;
balance; finish. Alcohol. Varietal
composition
(if known). Summary. ($
paid)
|
Wines are considered
Equal Quality
Within Categories of Recommendation
(Listed
Alphabetically by Brand)
consensus
terms appear in bold
(possible flaws? are in brackets)
* indicates a second or third party
WEBSITE
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HIGHLY
RECOMMENDED
|
 Esterlina
Pinot Noir
1999 Anderson
Valley
Dark red
color; complex, rich, deep, concentrated, ripe,
dark cherry fruit with alcohol
(overripe?), violets, toasted almond, dried
herb, dill, tomato and slight barnyard
(mold?) aromas; young, pleasant, simple,
initially sweet, cherry, red raspberry,
white pepper, well-integrated flavors; smooth
entry, medium body; very good balance,
lively and just slightly tart; long,
drying finish with a little heat. 13.5%
alcohol. Lots of concentration and focus in this
wine, which should gain a bit of richness with a
year or two of bottle age, in spite of its
drink-me-now appeal. ($30) WEBSITE
|
 Goldeneye
Pinot Noir
1999 Anderson
Valley
Medium-light
red color; complex, sweet, ripe
tomato, bacon fat, earth, American
oak, spice, pepper,
cinnamon, chocolate and vanilla
aromas; sweet, ripe, red and black
cherry flavors; smooth, medium
body, very slightly rich; good
balance, slightly tart; long,
flavorful finish. 14.5% alcohol. Clean,
complex and distinctive flavors with lots of
flash and nothing objectionable make this wine
very enjoyable. ($40) WEBSITE
|
 Navarro
Pinot Noir
2000 Mendocino
Clear, garnet
red color; clean, fresh, concentrated fruit,
Beaujolais-like, intense black cherry,
cranberry, raspberry, strawberry,
currant, bubblegum, violet and oak aromas; ripe,
strawberry, tart cherry, candy and cherry cola
flavors; light to medium body, silky texture;
well-balanced, faintly tart; very
light tannins in the lingering, faintly bitter,
very pleasant finish. 13.8% alcohol.
Great flavors, refreshing, uncomplicated, easy
drinking and well-balanced in a lighter style.
($15) BEST
BUY WEBSITE
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|
RECOMMENDED
|
 Elke
Pinot Noir
1999 Anderson
Valley, "Donnelly Creek
Vineyard"
Light to
medium red color, slightly hazy; rich,
alcoholic, slightly fruity, ripe red cherry,
watermelon, roses, spice, cinnamon, earth,
barnyard, caramel, vanilla and toasty oak
aromas; earth, somewhat oaky flavors overpower
light Bing cherry fruit; light
to medium body, very slightly rich;
clean, good balance is slightly tart; finishes
somewhat tart, drying, oaky and
alcoholic. 13% alcohol. This wine has attractive
elements in place, but the fruit is just hanging
on by a thread. It could'a been a contender, but
extra credit doesn't make up for not completing
the basic assignment. ($22) WEBSITE
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 Husch
Pinot Noir
1999 Anderson
Valley ESTATE
Light to
medium garnet color; black currant, black
cherry, herbs, straw, ripe tomato with
hints of leather, meat, American oak,
smoke, toast, earth, barnyard and burnt
rubber in the aromas; sweet, light fruit,
currant, black cherry and oak flavors;
light to medium body, very slightly
rich; balance is slightly flat, low
acid; mild finish lingers, is
slightly hot. 13.9% alcohol. A lighter
style that again seems shy on fruit. ($14.50)
WEBSITE
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 Roederer
Estate
Pinot Noir 1998
Anderson
Valley ESTATE
Medium dark
garnet color, faint haze; smoke, toast, oak,
earth, cinnamon, rubber, vegetal with muted
cherry fruit and musty, moldy, mousy
(Brettanomyces?) aromas; tight, anise, earthy,
vegetal, mushroom, medicinal (filter pad?) and
wispy cherry Kirsch flavors (oxidized?);
light, round body without richness;
good balance; medium length, lean, green
(underripe?) finish. 13% alcohol. Decent, but
underwhelming red from this California sparkling
wine leader. ($18 - available at the winery
only) WEBSITE
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TASTED
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 Braren-Pauli
Pinot Noir
1998 Mendocino,
"Roar Vineyard"
Clear, medium
dark red color; light, closed, low
cherry and raspberry fruit aromas with
hints of vanilla, cinnamon, herbs, grass, rye
bread, smoke, wax, medicine, nail polish (ethyl
acetate?), cardboard (filter pad?);
light, spicy, flat, vaguely raspberry
flavors; light body, slightly tannic;
balanced, slightly tart; a little
astringent, sharp and warm on the finish.
13.5% alcohol. Although complex and decently
balanced, this lost favor for lacking freshness
and depth and for showing more off flavors than
it did varietal traits. ($11) WEBSITE
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 Handley
Pinot Noir
1998 Anderson
Valley ESTATE
RESERVE
Medium garnet
red color; berry jam, green peppercorn,
watermelon rind, rhubarb, herbs, grass, mint,
Sherry, oak and slightly medicinal
(underripe? filter pad? stemmy? moldy?)
aromas; dry, "pretty" fruit flavors with
wood, oak and hints of tobacco and herbs;
light to medium body; balance needs acid;
finishes with dusty tannins, a little heat.
13.5% alcohol. Only 278 cases of this wine were
produced and it won multiple Gold and Silver
medals in competitions. The fruit in this bottle
seems to have gone into hibernation leaving
alcohol, oak and mustiness to take over. ($30)
WEBSITE
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This
Panel
included Regulars Mark, Glenn, Bob, Jim
L., Betsy and Jim V. and Guests Antonio
and Graham
About
Pinot Noir
|
|
