Popped and poured. Delicate, tangy cherry aroma. Clean red fruit flavor followed by a kick of loam. Earthy notes in the pleasantly bitter finish. Tight and restrained when first opened but quickly starts to open up. Excellent now, could get even better.
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13.6% abv. Per label, “After pressing, the wine was put into oak barrels to age for over one year… unfined and unfiltered… 71 cases were produced in 2014.”
Intact cork. Ruby color with transparency at the edges. Nose some polished black cherries, hint of spice. Palate initially nondescript, with time some chalky tannins, then black cherries with noticeable minerality. On day 2, more soft accessible fruit with hint of earth.
Still seems young and structured, but nice balance, doesn't taste new world (in a good way!)
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Clear Ruby color. Nose of red fruit. This really needed an hour to open up. After that I tasted raspberry, strawberry, citrus - seemed closest to red grapefruit, baking spices. Mild tannins. Medium acidity.
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This is so good. Crunchy, cool dark red pinot fruit, with amazing perceptions of soil, sun warmed stones, crunchy, earthy dark red fruit, and freshly trampled sweet spice leaves and forest aromas. This wine comes across as ALIVE and well. I really like it.
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ZWD’s note below is generally apt for us (including cork/ neck gunk) — except we missed the hint of cookie dough! We did get close with baking spices, etc. This is the fourth Briceland pinot noir we’ve had in the last few months, and we found it to be the most structured — and likely to evolve. At present, we enjoyed deep dark fruit, lovely savory and saline flavors, and excellent backbone acidity. Although pure in color, there was a somewhat chewy texture. This is yet another distinctive fellow — and we will look for another bottle.
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Upon pouring, this wine showed a notably pure, deep crimson hue, notwithstanding the partially ossified wine crystals and gunk along the bottom quarter of the cork. (And for some reason this bottle's cork was stained purple-red, though not from any apparent internal seepage.) But these are inconsequential to the point, which is this, my first tasting experience with a Briceland Vineyards wine, indeed a Humboldt county wine. I've enjoyed following the nose over the past 90-minutes sans sipping, watching as it evolved from simple sour red cherry to a deeper complexion of red fruits, violets, forest febreze, and subtle bakers spices (and from time to time cookie-dough ice-cream). Very lovely, smooth, and not quite what I was expecting. On the palate, this was concentrated with a double-dose of sour cherry/raspberry (red fruits) and a triple dose of bracing acidity. After a couple sips, fine tannins start to paint the teeth, a bit of mineral mixed in with that sensing. Several aspects of this wine remind me of the 2017 Drew Family Cellars Pinot Noir Mid-Elevation I recently enjoyed in Anderson Valley -- vibrant sour-cherries, a touch floral, good acidity -- though this wine seems more serious and amplified than the entry-level Drew. This also seems young, and I will be interested to follow this over the next couple days to see how the slight bottle aeration of the recorked bottle affects the wine stored at cellar temps. A second half-glass pour showed a less sour, more full (on the mid-palate) rendering of the preceding. There's a lot to follow here, and I'm very excited to sample the other Briceland wines that just arrived (let's hope bottle-shock is a myth).
Still drinking well with sweet/tart red fruits in harmony. Restrained and balanced with med- body and good length. No excessive oak or alcohol, just a pleasure to drink.
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violet-burgundy color with some transparency. Nose dark fruits with hint of vanilla. Palate red cherries -- lacquered/smooth flavor with a hint of woodiness, some herbal flavor, bright acidity with some light tannins on the finish. My family's wine of the night, very nice QPR, a crowd pleaser but has some depth. 92 pts
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Very nice, medium deep red. Some sediment and goo in neck. On open very tight and tart but with 30-60 minutes opens nicely to reveal ripe cherries (vs sour on open). A whiff of sous bois and earthiness, some lingering acidity. tannins integrated nicely. Drink now or try in next couple of years.
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Saturated cherry red. Nose of white and purple flowers, red fruits, evergreen and spice.
Pop and pour revealed red fruits and a licorice note. With air, the wine became more expressive and complex, mimicking the nose, with the licorice note fading into the deep background. Savory and concentrated, there's a lot of structure here. Drinking well now, but should age well for a decade or more.
13.6% abv, 71 cases produced. Drink through 2030.
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Deep red color and completely opaque. Nose of purple flowers, red fruits, forest floor and baking spice.
Medium bodied with explosive flavor. The Phelps vineyard produces arguably the biggest Pinot that Briceland produces, but it's still well-balanced with enough lift to balance the fruit. The flavors follow the nose, offering good complexity in such a young wine. Tannins are noticeable but fine-grained and recede with an hour of aeration. The savory character of this wine really shines on the finish.
While the wine was aged in oak for over a year, there's no "oaky" flavor - I assume neutral barrels. 13.6% abv, 71 cases produced. There's enough material that the wine should drink well through 2030.
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5/20/2023 - wineshlub wrote: 92 Points
Popped and poured. Delicate, tangy cherry aroma. Clean red fruit flavor followed by a kick of loam. Earthy notes in the pleasantly bitter finish. Tight and restrained when first opened but quickly starts to open up. Excellent now, could get even better.
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12/7/2021 - fred o. Likes this wine: 92 Points
13.6% abv.
Per label, “After pressing, the wine was put into oak barrels to age for over one year… unfined and unfiltered… 71 cases were produced in 2014.”
Intact cork.
Ruby color with transparency at the edges.
Nose some polished black cherries, hint of spice.
Palate initially nondescript, with time some chalky tannins, then black cherries with noticeable minerality.
On day 2, more soft accessible fruit with hint of earth.
Still seems young and structured, but nice balance, doesn't taste new world (in a good way!)
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1/1/2021 - maxmanx wrote:
Best glass was on the 2nd day! Decant a lot or hold.
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10/4/2020 - Doc2 Likes this wine:
Clear Ruby color. Nose of red fruit. This really needed an hour to open up. After that I tasted raspberry, strawberry, citrus - seemed closest to red grapefruit, baking spices. Mild tannins. Medium acidity.
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8/9/2019 - Richard P Howden wrote: 89 Points
Light red fruit nose, attractive cherry palate with nice balance.
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6/2/2019 - Charlie Carnes Likes this wine: 95 Points
This is so good. Crunchy, cool dark red pinot fruit, with amazing perceptions of soil, sun warmed stones, crunchy, earthy dark red fruit, and freshly trampled sweet spice leaves and forest aromas. This wine comes across as ALIVE and well. I really like it.
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5/21/2019 - Deux Chevaux wrote:
ZWD’s note below is generally apt for us (including cork/ neck gunk) — except we missed the hint of cookie dough! We did get close with baking spices, etc. This is the fourth Briceland pinot noir we’ve had in the last few months, and we found it to be the most structured — and likely to evolve. At present, we enjoyed deep dark fruit, lovely savory and saline flavors, and excellent backbone acidity. Although pure in color, there was a somewhat chewy texture. This is yet another distinctive fellow — and we will look for another bottle.
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5/13/2019 - z_willus_d wrote: 91 Points
Upon pouring, this wine showed a notably pure, deep crimson hue, notwithstanding the partially ossified wine crystals and gunk along the bottom quarter of the cork. (And for some reason this bottle's cork was stained purple-red, though not from any apparent internal seepage.) But these are inconsequential to the point, which is this, my first tasting experience with a Briceland Vineyards wine, indeed a Humboldt county wine. I've enjoyed following the nose over the past 90-minutes sans sipping, watching as it evolved from simple sour red cherry to a deeper complexion of red fruits, violets, forest febreze, and subtle bakers spices (and from time to time cookie-dough ice-cream). Very lovely, smooth, and not quite what I was expecting. On the palate, this was concentrated with a double-dose of sour cherry/raspberry (red fruits) and a triple dose of bracing acidity. After a couple sips, fine tannins start to paint the teeth, a bit of mineral mixed in with that sensing. Several aspects of this wine remind me of the 2017 Drew Family Cellars Pinot Noir Mid-Elevation I recently enjoyed in Anderson Valley -- vibrant sour-cherries, a touch floral, good acidity -- though this wine seems more serious and amplified than the entry-level Drew. This also seems young, and I will be interested to follow this over the next couple days to see how the slight bottle aeration of the recorked bottle affects the wine stored at cellar temps. A second half-glass pour showed a less sour, more full (on the mid-palate) rendering of the preceding. There's a lot to follow here, and I'm very excited to sample the other Briceland wines that just arrived (let's hope bottle-shock is a myth).
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1/26/2019 - CMN wrote:
Still drinking well with sweet/tart red fruits in harmony. Restrained and balanced with med- body and good length. No excessive oak or alcohol, just a pleasure to drink.
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12/25/2018 - fred o. Likes this wine:
violet-burgundy color with some transparency. Nose dark fruits with hint of vanilla. Palate red cherries -- lacquered/smooth flavor with a hint of woodiness, some herbal flavor, bright acidity with some light tannins on the finish. My family's wine of the night, very nice QPR, a crowd pleaser but has some depth. 92 pts
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12/5/2018 - Andrew H wrote: 91 Points
Very nice, medium deep red. Some sediment and goo in neck. On open very tight and tart but with 30-60 minutes opens nicely to reveal ripe cherries (vs sour on open). A whiff of sous bois and earthiness, some lingering acidity. tannins integrated nicely. Drink now or try in next couple of years.
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9/19/2017 - CMN Likes this wine: 91 Points
Saturated cherry red. Nose of white and purple flowers, red fruits, evergreen and spice.
Pop and pour revealed red fruits and a licorice note. With air, the wine became more expressive and complex, mimicking the nose, with the licorice note fading into the deep background. Savory and concentrated, there's a lot of structure here. Drinking well now, but should age well for a decade or more.
13.6% abv, 71 cases produced. Drink through 2030.
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1/25/2017 - CMN wrote: 91 Points
Deep red color and completely opaque. Nose of purple flowers, red fruits, forest floor and baking spice.
Medium bodied with explosive flavor. The Phelps vineyard produces arguably the biggest Pinot that Briceland produces, but it's still well-balanced with enough lift to balance the fruit. The flavors follow the nose, offering good complexity in such a young wine. Tannins are noticeable but fine-grained and recede with an hour of aeration. The savory character of this wine really shines on the finish.
While the wine was aged in oak for over a year, there's no "oaky" flavor - I assume neutral barrels. 13.6% abv, 71 cases produced. There's enough material that the wine should drink well through 2030.
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