April 8, 2012 - PnP (2 nights). Light garnet with some orange/brown. Glad I found another to try after the flawed bottle earlier in the week. This one had no defects. Lovely nose of red berries and cherry delicately interwoven with floral, earth and asian spice notes. The palate featured bright fruit with almost bracing acidity and a little 'rustic' yet unresolved tannin. This had both finesse and complexity, decent penetration and length - just some rough edges keeping it out of the elegant/excellent range.
April 5, 2012 - Sadly, could see the charm behind the corkedness.
April 13, 2008 - delicious with pan-seared wild salmon with carrots/leeks/ginger and garlic, buerre blanc, & truffled haricots verts
December 21, 2007 - DO NOT drink with chocolate! Easily the worst food pairing ever. Impressions of "thin" were a result of digging into the Xmas candy bowl. Other pinots faired even worse! Nicely perfumed nose. Will check in tomorrow on the remainder of the btl.
October 17, 2007 - 34th Street Extravaganza (34th Street Cafe, Austin, TX): As good as ever. Drinking really well right now and I don't think it'll be getting that much better. Still pretty tannic right out of the bottle, but it softened up quite a bit and became very, very good, especially with the food.
July 21, 2007 - Sensational. Light garnet to dark ruby color with a soaring nose of cherry, berry, forest floor, and orange zest (which I find to be a give-away for Hansel Pinot with some age). Lovely on the palate with super texture, silkiness, ample structure, fruit, earth and acidity. This really seems more like a 2003 or 2004 than the 2001 it is. Has held up tremendously and has 2-3 years left to full maturity and maybe another 3-5 years past that before it'll go into decline. My favorite Hansel Pinot to date, and those who have followed my tasting notes will know that I've had many of Stephen's wines. Absolutely fantastic wine.
June 27, 2005 - Wine was meaty, with notes of fruit, herbs and earth. Very lovely. Much better than many $35 pinots! Drank at Montrachet with the tasting menu. (Which, surprisingly, pairs better with Bordeaux than Burgundy). It was still terrific, however!
March 19, 2005 - corked
November 29, 2004 - At Montrachet Burgundy Dinner with Lionel, Don, and Praveen. #2 wine of night compared to Dominque Laurent Charmes Chambertin 2000. Light color.