This wine have put on some weight in the last two years. This drink more like a good burgundy than any other Rhys I’ve ever had (it’s been a lot, used to buy full allotment). Drank over two hours and got better and better. 2017 was not a great year in Cali for Pinot but I think it might have benefitted me with this producer. Can’t say it’s deep and profound wine but drinks very good. I don’t think it will age that well but enjoy now with 30-60 min of air.
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Retail $49? Under cork. I have a limited experience with Rhys and this wine (like the Chardonnay) is listed as an "Alesia" wine. According to the website, the Alesia line is a more approachable cuvée while the non-Alesia line is a wine that is perhaps a bit more complex. I am pretty sure this is the latter, but that is not an option here on CT, for whatever reason. this wine, though? Pretty fantastic with great fruit (Bing cherry), earth, weight, and enough verve to keep it beyond interesting. A pretty fantastic California Pinot Noir.
Red cherry, raspberry, blackcurrant leaf on the nose but generally quite dominated by vanilla and toast from the oak - a little off putting for my preference. Palate is quite transparent with earthy character which I like. Medium acid and medium tannin.
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Intense nose of strawberries and cherries that leads me to new world pinot (and i would include Germany on top of the usual suspects like New Zealand or US), powerful too. Palate is milky with dense texture, slightly “dirty”. Finishes with some bitterness, which is generally a no go for me.
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New-world: Brought for a friend. Slightly more fruit-forward than the Cristom with riper cherry and raspberry fruit, quite typical of a Californian Pinot. Still quite primary but drinking well
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Aromas of black cherry, barnyard, dried mushrooms, sage, dried tobacco, cigar box, leather, and cedar.
Medium acid, medium tannins, and long elegant finish. Nose was a bit restrained at first but opened up beautifully after a 1.5 hour decant. Great bottle of wine.
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It just keeps getting better. Still has time to go in the bottle, but it is a rich sup right now. Straight out of the bottle, a raspberry fruit with plenty of dirt. Balanced through the whole sip. These guys can make a wine.
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A good bottle. Feels a bit like a light burgundy or Beaujolais . Day one drank good, day 2 just alright, if you open comitt to finishing it. Very much in the red berrie spectrum, less sweet than any Rhys I’ve drank.
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Aha — this was delicious. Full floral charm of pinot on center stage. Maybe not quite as light and feminine as the Bohan Dillon, but it’s in that same kind of wavelength. But darker and more serious. If I had to choose I guess I’d go with the Hirsch though.
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Took 30 min to open up. Typical Rhys nose for me of blood orange and bright red fruit. A bit tart initially but fruit opened up as well in the glass over time. Cloudy and almost grimey in appearance. Good but not great.
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Blind Tasting of 8 Coastal California Pinots $20-60. Ranked 7 out of 8 by group and me. Nose of herbs and oak. Complex flavors of herbs and spices. Medium-long finish. Very nice wine, lower ranking was only by comparison.
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I opened the bottle and let it sit for about an hour but did not decant. The nose was classic Pinot: dark cherry, wet earth, and tar. The palate was balanced, with more dark red fruit, minerals/iodine, and a surprisingly (tasty) mushroomy woodiness. The acidity was a little muted but present all thru the finish, which had a very nice “grip” to it. Really good stuff, and I look forward to tasting another bottle a few years down the road!
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Every time I open a blended Rhys/Alesia Santa Cruz or San Mateo Pinot Noir I am blown away. The fruit is vibrant, there is ample structure, and I can taste the earthy underpinnings much sooner than in the flagship Rhys single vineyard wines. This 2017 repeats the same pattern. It's a wonderful reminder of what's really going on in the vineyards, and that patience is going to be rewarded with these bottles, as well as the wines in the single vineyard program. I could probably drink all twelve half bottles I bought of this over the course of the next month. The wine is offering a great deal of pleasure right now. It also has the depth, structure and nuance to age for several years. I will use it as a guidepost - watching for developing maturity before I dip significantly into the single vineyard wines.
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Tasty dark cherry and raspberry aromas and flavors with earth, mineral, and vanilla on the savory palate with a moderate finish. Drinking quite well young!
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Decanted 2 hours prior to Friday first pour. Translucent cranberry color with a orange tinge. Red raspberries, subdued rainier cherries followed by a bruised red apple skin finish. Still a little tight and will wait on the others I have in stock. A very light style Pinot.
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4/27/2024 - Golf_Wine Likes this wine: 91 Points
This wine have put on some weight in the last two years.
This drink more like a good burgundy than any other Rhys I’ve ever had (it’s been a lot, used to buy full allotment).
Drank over two hours and got better and better. 2017 was not a great year in Cali for Pinot but I think it might have benefitted me with this producer. Can’t say it’s deep and profound wine but drinks very good. I don’t think it will age that well but enjoy now with 30-60 min of air.
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12/4/2023 - The Drunken Cyclist Likes this wine: 91 Points
Retail $49? Under cork. I have a limited experience with Rhys and this wine (like the Chardonnay) is listed as an "Alesia" wine. According to the website, the Alesia line is a more approachable cuvée while the non-Alesia line is a wine that is perhaps a bit more complex. I am pretty sure this is the latter, but that is not an option here on CT, for whatever reason. this wine, though? Pretty fantastic with great fruit (Bing cherry), earth, weight, and enough verve to keep it beyond interesting. A pretty fantastic California Pinot Noir.
www.thedrunkencyclist.com
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10/5/2023 - THECORKDORK Likes this wine: 89 Points
Solid village PN from Rhys. Herbal and Woodsy.
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6/10/2023 - OmiyaDrinker wrote: 90 Points
Red cherry, raspberry, blackcurrant leaf on the nose but generally quite dominated by vanilla and toast from the oak - a little off putting for my preference. Palate is quite transparent with earthy character which I like. Medium acid and medium tannin.
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6/9/2023 - Wineallover wrote: 91 Points
Intense nose of strawberries and cherries that leads me to new world pinot (and i would include Germany on top of the usual suspects like New Zealand or US), powerful too. Palate is milky with dense texture, slightly “dirty”. Finishes with some bitterness, which is generally a no go for me.
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4/4/2023 - melvinyeowq wrote: 90 Points
New-world: Brought for a friend. Slightly more fruit-forward than the Cristom with riper cherry and raspberry fruit, quite typical of a Californian Pinot. Still quite primary but drinking well
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3/26/2023 - snamnoum@gmail.com wrote: 92 Points
Aromas of black cherry, barnyard, dried mushrooms, sage, dried tobacco, cigar box, leather, and cedar.
Medium acid, medium tannins, and long elegant finish. Nose was a bit restrained at first but opened up beautifully after a 1.5 hour decant. Great bottle of wine.
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2/27/2023 - Guarded by Griffs Likes this wine: 96 Points
It just keeps getting better. Still has time to go in the bottle, but it is a rich sup right now. Straight out of the bottle, a raspberry fruit with plenty of dirt. Balanced through the whole sip. These guys can make a wine.
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7/10/2022 - Golf_Wine Likes this wine: 89 Points
A good bottle. Feels a bit like a light burgundy or Beaujolais . Day one drank good, day 2 just alright, if you open comitt to finishing it.
Very much in the red berrie spectrum, less sweet than any Rhys I’ve drank.
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5/4/2022 - Madera16 wrote:
Aha — this was delicious. Full floral charm of pinot on center stage. Maybe not quite as light and feminine as the Bohan Dillon, but it’s in that same kind of wavelength. But darker and more serious. If I had to choose I guess I’d go with the Hirsch though.
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3/6/2022 - BHP1994 wrote: 90 Points
Took 30 min to open up. Typical Rhys nose for me of blood orange and bright red fruit. A bit tart initially but fruit opened up as well in the glass over time. Cloudy and almost grimey in appearance. Good but not great.
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12/12/2021 - Gnome Likes this wine:
Blind Tasting of 8 Coastal California Pinots $20-60. Ranked 7 out of 8 by group and me. Nose of herbs and oak. Complex flavors of herbs and spices. Medium-long finish. Very nice wine, lower ranking was only by comparison.
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12/12/2021 - Takeshi Likes this wine: 92 Points
Smooth mineral, integrated tannin. Fruit and fizz solid.
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6/28/2021 - DickMull Likes this wine: 92 Points
I opened the bottle and let it sit for about an hour but did not decant. The nose was classic Pinot: dark cherry, wet earth, and tar. The palate was balanced, with more dark red fruit, minerals/iodine, and a surprisingly (tasty) mushroomy woodiness. The acidity was a little muted but present all thru the finish, which had a very nice “grip” to it. Really good stuff, and I look forward to tasting another bottle a few years down the road!
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4/6/2021 - pjhr Likes this wine: 93 Points
As delicious as the last bottle!
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2/16/2021 - pjhr Likes this wine: 93 Points
More vibrant sour cherry notes on the nose and savory palate than the previous bottles with delicious acidity on the moderate long finish.
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2/4/2021 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Tasty dark cherry and raspberry aromas and flavors with earth, mineral, and vanilla on the savory palate with a moderate finish.
Simply delicious!
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1/18/2021 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Tasty, but not quite as vibrant as the last bottle!
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12/23/2020 - pjhr Likes this wine: 93 Points
More vibrant sour cherry notes on the nose and savory palate than the previous bottles with delicious acidity on the moderate long finish.
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12/1/2020 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Tasty dark cherry and raspberry aromas and flavors with earth, mineral, and vanilla on the savory palate with a moderate finish.
Simply delicious!
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10/30/2020 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
As tasty as the last bottle!
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10/15/2020 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Tasty dark cherry and raspberry aromas and flavors with earth, mineral, and vanilla on the savory palate with a moderate finish.
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10/7/2020 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
As tasty as the last bottle!
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9/4/2020 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Tasty dark cherry and raspberry aromas and flavors with earth, mineral, and vanilla on the savory palate with a moderate finish.
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9/2/2020 - Rieslingfan wrote:
Every time I open a blended Rhys/Alesia Santa Cruz or San Mateo Pinot Noir I am blown away. The fruit is vibrant, there is ample structure, and I can taste the earthy underpinnings much sooner than in the flagship Rhys single vineyard wines. This 2017 repeats the same pattern. It's a wonderful reminder of what's really going on in the vineyards, and that patience is going to be rewarded with these bottles, as well as the wines in the single vineyard program. I could probably drink all twelve half bottles I bought of this over the course of the next month. The wine is offering a great deal of pleasure right now. It also has the depth, structure and nuance to age for several years. I will use it as a guidepost - watching for developing maturity before I dip significantly into the single vineyard wines.
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8/24/2020 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
As tasty as the last bottle!
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8/7/2020 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Tasty dark cherry and raspberry aromas and flavors with earth, mineral, and vanilla on the savory palate with a moderate finish. Drinking quite well young!
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6/12/2020 - Guarded by Griffs Likes this wine: 94 Points
Got a half case today and drank one. Fabulous. The wine has years and years to go. Great balance of fruit and earth.
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4/24/2020 - buymoreredsdrinkmorewhites wrote:
Decanted 2 hours prior to Friday first pour. Translucent cranberry color with a orange tinge. Red raspberries, subdued rainier cherries followed by a bruised red apple skin finish. Still a little tight and will wait on the others I have in stock. A very light style Pinot.
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