5th Street Dinner Club "Pinot from around the world" Blind Tasting
Long Beach, CA
Tasted May 6, 2011 by PIntag with 689 views
Introduction
Wines were tasted in two flights -- a west coast flight with one Oregon and five California wines from different AVAs and a "rest of the world" flight of wines from Burgundy and New Zealand. Tasting was conducted as single blind, with the emptied bottles on full display if one chose to look. Wines were transferred to generic bottles at least a couple of hours beforehand, so they did see a bit of air.
Flight 1 - West Coast Flight (6 notes)
This flight had only one big surprise for me - the most expensive wine in the flight, the Talley Rosemary's, was clearly at or near the bottom of the pack. Perhaps it needs a lot more time (or a long decant for this tasting), but I tasted it again after the reveal and did not think it to be a great wine. The wine I brought, the 2008 Stefania, was the group's (and my) winner, edging out the 2007 BR Cohn by a small margin (which was my last place wine - go figure). Keep up the good work Stefania and Paul!
Red
2007 Anglim Pinot Noir Fiddlestix Vineyard
USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills
Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Quite fragrant nose showing some pencil lead and kirsch. On the palate, fairly complex flavors of cherry and spice, a little bit of a green underneath, with good balance. Long tannic and some stemmy flavors. Overall, a very enjoyable wine. My #3, group's #5.
Red
2008 Stefania Pinot Noir Santa Cruz Mountains
USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains
Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Fresh strawberry and a hint of oak on the very fragrant nose. On the palate, a big burst of bright fruit, oak, and spice. Nice balancing acidity. Long finish with some creamy vanilla and raspberry. My favorite wine of the flight. This should age well. My #1, group's #1.
Red
2008 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir
USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley
Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Creamy vanilla oak and some dark cherry on the nose. On the palate, smooth and creamy, but slightly unfocused and lacking concentration and balancing acidity. Hollow mid-palate. Long finish primarily vanilla flavor but quite weak. I guessed a Sonoma wine, but was surprised this was Oregon by the flavor profile. My #5, group's #4.
Red
2007 Adelaida Pinot Noir HMR Estate Reserve
USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles
Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Tight nose, a little vegetal and a floral component. On the palate, some prominent oak, but not offensive, very nice blueberry with good balance. Long and very pleasing finish. My #2, group's #3.
Red
2007 B.R. Cohn Pinot Noir
USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley
Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Creamy with a little alcohol showing on the nose. On the palate, prominent cola flavor, a little flat, lacks acidity. Dull finish. My #6, group's #2.
Red
2007 Talley Vineyards Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard
USA, California, Central Coast, Arroyo Grande Valley
Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Tight nose with a kind of strange dank aroma. On the palate, simple cherry juice with some vanilla oak. Lacking in acidity. Long tannic finish with flavors of cherry juice. Not a bad Pinot at all, but I was quite disappointed when I found out what this wine was. My #4, group's #6.
Flight 2 - Burgundy and New Zealand Flight (6 notes)
This flight was mostly a disappointment for me. The NZ wines were pretty mediocre as was the German Heger. The JM Boillot was also not showing very well. The Thibault Liger-Belair was easily the best wine in the flight by a huge margin. It's a very nice wine now and should age very well in the short to medium term. I should note that the first bottle of this was badly corked so a new bottle was substituted so it wasn't blind.
Red
2007 Rippon Pinot Noir
New Zealand, South Island, Otago, Lake Wanaka
Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Very fragrant nose with a strange mandarin orange aroma bordering on overpowering in an unpleasant way. On the palate, mandarin orange and tart cherry juice with good balance. Long finish of tart fruit. My #2, group's #6.
Red
2009 Burnt Spur Pinot Noir
New Zealand, North Island, Wairarapa, Martinborough
Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Fairly musty nose with some dark fruit showing. On the palate, simple cherry and oak flavors with good balance and a pleasing finish. My #4, group's #2.
Red
2007 Thibault Liger-Belair Gevrey-Chambertin La Croix des Champs
France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin
Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. First bottle was badly corked and replaced by this one. Nose was fresh and vibrant cherry with some mushroom and damp earth. On the palate, tart cherry and layers of red fruit with good acidity and balance. Long finish with soft tannins. My #1, group's #1.
Red
2007 Dr. Heger Pinot Noir Sonett
Germany, Baden
Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Nice and pleasing nose of cherry, spice, and a floral element. Palate showed dark fruit but was kind of flat and dull and quite tannic with a medium finish. My #3, group's #5.
Red
2007 Daniel Schuster Pinot Noir Selection
New Zealand, South Island, Canterbury, Waipara
Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Nose of sweet caramel that really coated the nasal passages so that you could almost taste it - sickening really. Palate was overdone ripe and candied with a somewhat sickening finish. Didn't really enjoy this one very much. My #6, group's #3.
Red
2007 J.M. Boillot Pommard 1er Cru Les Jarollières
France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pommard 1er Cru
Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Some strange earthy notes on the nose that defy description. On the palate, tight with acidity dominating and a sour finish. I think this is probably in a dumb phase right now. My #5, group's #4.
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