CT blind tasting group does new and old world Pinot

Brian's
Tasted Thursday, May 28, 2015 by salil with 421 views

Flight 1 - Starter (1 Note)

  • 2009 Soter Brut Rosé Mineral Springs Ranch 83 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton

    Not much here that's of interest; there's a faint yeasty note on top of red berried fruit, but there's a slightly confected, sweet edge to the fruit and what seems like a bit of lingering residual sugar. Not particularly interesting.

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Flight 2 - Flight 1: Cote de Beaune reds (2 Notes)

Flight 3 - Flight 2: Who let the dogs out? (2 Notes)

  • 2010 Belle Pente Pinot Noir Belle Pente Vineyard 74 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Yamhill-Carlton

    Ugh, not a fan of this whatsoever. A really ripe, slightly roasted note, and a total mess on the palate. There's something I could perceive as vaguely resembling red berried fruit - except the fruit flavours taste more like the artificially sweetened "fruit" in a bad-tasting protein powder, rather than anything that might grow on a tree. Astringent on the palate with sour acidity and a bit of tannic bite on the back end, and an easy pass. Shockingly, the best wine of the flight.

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  • 2011 Domaine de la Côte Pinot Noir Sta. Rita Hills 68 Points

    USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills

    A mess of a wine that I found undrinkable (though a couple of others at the table liked it much more than I did). It's an awkward combination of excessively ripe roasted, rhubarb, and cherry liqueur flavours, and then more astringent and underripe herbal and stemmy notes, all conveyed with the finesse of Homer Simpson's makeup shotgun (set on whore mode, of course), and finishing with alcoholic heat and a tannic bite on the back end.

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Flight 4 - Flight 3: Oh, they make reds in Chassagne too? Neat. (2 Notes)

  • 2009 Blain-Gagnard Chassagne-Montrachet Rouge 91 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet

    This is fantastic. Very light on its feet with the sense of delicacy and finesse that I look for in Pinot, with bright red fruited flavours tinged with understated floral and earthy accents, and a bright acid spine beneath that keeps it very lively. Kept going back to this, and it got more fragrant and complex with air. Lovely wine and a producer I should explore more.

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  • 2012 Domaine Ramonet Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos de la Boudriotte Rouge 88 Points

    France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru

    This was a bit disappointing given the producer's reputation, though I wonder how much is to do with age, as it opened up a little with air but kept giving the impression that it's holding a lot in reserve. There's surprisingly ripe, sappy black cherry and red berried fruit here tinged with some oak and higher toned herbal and pine needle notes, but with time the oaky elements subside a bit. Air brings out a bit more complexity, but it still feels painfully young and more about promise than actual enjoyment right now.

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Flight 5 - Flight 4: Mercy... mercy! (2 Notes)

  • 2008 Domaine Serene Pinot Noir Evenstad Reserve 65 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    On the first sip this was a blast of dense, overripe, roasted red fruit, and I said then that I didn't like it but at least didn't find it hideously offensive, as I might find a modern Rolland Bordeaux or a SQN. I recant those statements, having given this a bit more air. Fifteen minutes later: the same roasted, overripe red fruit, but now overwhelmed by toasty oak, more oak, and a note of VA. Downright awful.

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  • 2009 Shea Wine Cellars Pinot Noir Estate Shea Vineyard 70 Points

    USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

    Pro: Not as brutally, monstrously oaky as the Serene Evenstad that was poured in the same flight.

    Cons: Everything else, from the confected rhubarb/cola notes and the roasted, jammy cherry fruit to the tannic and astringent finish.

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Flight 6 - Dessert (1 Note)

  • 2006 Château Rieussec 90 Points

    France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

    Liked this a lot. Not especially complex, but very fun to drink with plenty of ripe apricot and tropical fruit tinged with honey, vanilla cream, flowers, and botrytis spice, with decent acidity underneath giving it some lift. Fun wine.

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