It kind of feels wrong to be enjoying such a boldly bastardized iteration of an otherwise delicate, bright and poetic variety this much. Am I just another spectator in the plebeian grandstand after all? Am I just another unwitting round of cannon fodder for the cruel mechanations of our materialistic world? Are my thoughts my own? Should I even care? Belle Glos says, "do not fret, my simple-minded friend" before pouring another glass of their fat-fingered Pinot Noir into my glass, "just try to enjoy yourself, and don't overthink it."
I sit back and start taking notes anyways. An odd suggestion of root beer and cola drape the set in ambient light before the fruit-forward characters come on. Blackberry pie and dried cherry enter stage left and walk to the front while caramel, cedar, vanilla, christmas spices, strawberry jam and chocolate covered blueberries assemble around. Dark fruits antagonize the expectation of a delicate and bright affair, trading silk drapes for a heavy textile and deeper shade cast onto the palate. A nigh medium-plus body takes hold, tip-toeing on a velvety and particularly enveloping mouthfeel. What kind if pinot noir is this? It's certainly not shy to flash some welcome richness, yet the lack of humility and abundance of residual sugars posit a difficult grappling for those particularly inclined towards the traditional throes of what this grape represents in the broader world of red wine. The smooth finish is there, sure, but what else? This isn't really a pinot noir is it? Too big. Too boisterous. Too this. Too that.
It is a pinot noir though, apparently, and much to the purist's chagrin. It is perhaps by technicality only, because it really does play all-elbows like the jammy Cali cabs and regional fruitbombs of the area much more than it does how a pinot noir ought to play - with délicatesse and playful wisdom. Whatever. As annoying as this wine's existence is, it plays a role that many desire, and who are we to scoff? If its good, its good.
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Very good bottle tonight--much better than what I was expecting. This wine was dark crimson read, not the typical lighter PN color. It was sweet and viscous, buy not syrupy. I would buy this again. I would put this up there with the Three Sticks PNs.
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With greatest respects, I suggest you are grossly underrating this wine. Granted I have tasted only one young DRC RC. A 1966 at the Warwick Club in Houston in 1969. Still, I humbly suggest, this Pinot is definitely not too dark, and has years to go. Please do not be fooled by the bargain price, as compared with DRC RC. Tom Houston
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Beautiful font on the label and nice wax seal over the cork are the only things going for this bottle of wine. The inside contents are another story. It's a pass for me.
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A great crowd pleaser, but not a well made PN. Bad QPR. I'm glad it was a gift. I would never buy. Jammy, sweet, very limited tannins and finish, one dimensional, will not improve beyond pop n'pour on day 1. It is, however, pleasant to drink because of jamminess and smoothness. Everybody loves a touch of sweet, but it's not a serious wine.
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Drank at Beach Walk Cafe, Henderson Beach Inn, Destin, FL. Dark ruby colored, medium to full bodied, smooth and polished with nicely integrated full flavors of black raspberry, with hints of blueberry, subtle strawberry and cherry. There are tones of cinnamon, spice, sweet oak and tea on a lively acidity long finish with supple tannins. https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2023/07/belle-glos-clark-telephone-pinot-noir.html
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Jammy PNP. Not enough tannins to age. Short on acid, as well. It’s a small step up from Meiomi. I would say that if you like soft and fruity, then this is your Pinot.
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Unfortunately this wine doesn’t resemble a Pinot in color, smell, or taste..think cheap Syrah more like. To get this type of extraction from any Pinot grape is a crime, hard to imagine and do! Leave it to Wagner to ruin another beautiful grape. Over priced swill.
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Retail $55. Heavy bottle. We went to another of our favorite restaurants here in Houston, where this is on the list for $43. all cards on the table, I am not a fan of the Wagner Family wines, but Belle Glos is an exception. Sure, it is a big, fruity, big Pinot (yes, I realized I said "big" twice), but what else would one expect from the Wagners? Similar notes.
Retail $55. Heavy bottle. I was flying solo as my wife had orchestra rehearsal and my son was knee deep in Xbox, er, homework. So I went to what has become our favorite restaurant. It was thus based on two points: 1. The food is pretty good even though the menu rarely (never?) changes. 2. The wine list is solid and the prices, at least for a few of the items on the list, were extremely well priced. Well, tonight, I realized that many of the wines had been increased by about 25%. Oh well. In the end, I decided on this Pinot from the Wagner family. As one might expect from the producers, this is a big boy with dark fruit, even on the verge of brooding, considerable weight, but also enough acidity to try to make it work. Look, if you like "earthy" and terroir driven Pinots, this ain't it, but if you want a full-throttle wine that might challenge your conception of "Pinot Noir", this fits the bill.
Excellent. Red fruits including cherry, cranberry and raspberry jam. Spicy clove, cedar, baking spice, tobacco and subtle graphite. Rich texture, excellent and complex balanced structure.
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5/10/2024 - CourtlyDoc wrote: flawed
Smooth full body and mouthfeel, boysenberry and light woodsyness on nose, completely delicious.
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4/13/2024 - Metalhorns wrote: 86 Points
It kind of feels wrong to be enjoying such a boldly bastardized iteration of an otherwise delicate, bright and poetic variety this much. Am I just another spectator in the plebeian grandstand after all? Am I just another unwitting round of cannon fodder for the cruel mechanations of our materialistic world? Are my thoughts my own? Should I even care? Belle Glos says, "do not fret, my simple-minded friend" before pouring another glass of their fat-fingered Pinot Noir into my glass, "just try to enjoy yourself, and don't overthink it."
I sit back and start taking notes anyways. An odd suggestion of root beer and cola drape the set in ambient light before the fruit-forward characters come on. Blackberry pie and dried cherry enter stage left and walk to the front while caramel, cedar, vanilla, christmas spices, strawberry jam and chocolate covered blueberries assemble around. Dark fruits antagonize the expectation of a delicate and bright affair, trading silk drapes for a heavy textile and deeper shade cast onto the palate. A nigh medium-plus body takes hold, tip-toeing on a velvety and particularly enveloping mouthfeel. What kind if pinot noir is this? It's certainly not shy to flash some welcome richness, yet the lack of humility and abundance of residual sugars posit a difficult grappling for those particularly inclined towards the traditional throes of what this grape represents in the broader world of red wine. The smooth finish is there, sure, but what else? This isn't really a pinot noir is it? Too big. Too boisterous. Too this. Too that.
It is a pinot noir though, apparently, and much to the purist's chagrin. It is perhaps by technicality only, because it really does play all-elbows like the jammy Cali cabs and regional fruitbombs of the area much more than it does how a pinot noir ought to play - with délicatesse and playful wisdom. Whatever. As annoying as this wine's existence is, it plays a role that many desire, and who are we to scoff? If its good, its good.
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4/7/2024 - pikemasterflash wrote: 92 Points
Very good bottle tonight--much better than what I was expecting. This wine was dark crimson read, not the typical lighter PN color. It was sweet and viscous, buy not syrupy. I would buy this again. I would put this up there with the Three Sticks PNs.
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3/16/2024 - TomNichols Likes this wine: 94 Points
With greatest respects, I suggest you are grossly underrating this wine.
Granted I have tasted only one young DRC RC. A 1966
at the Warwick Club in Houston in 1969.
Still, I humbly suggest, this Pinot is definitely not too dark, and has years to go.
Please do not be fooled by the bargain price, as compared with DRC RC.
Tom
Houston
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1/24/2024 - 1kuhlman Does not like this wine: 85 Points
Beautiful font on the label and nice wax seal over the cork are the only things going for this bottle of wine. The inside contents are another story. It's a pass for me.
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1/16/2024 - S-E Likes this wine: 93 Points
Loved this btl, great Pinot, more full body than a frnch.
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12/25/2023 - whudock Likes this wine:
not as muscular as the other single vineyard offerings, but still solid in all dimensions.
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12/11/2023 - CourtlyDoc Likes this wine: 94 Points
Nose - dark berries, hint of smokiness.
Palate - smoky, full body, smooth, jammy, slightly tart, delicious with meatballs and pasta
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10/24/2023 - wcf1946 Does not like this wine: 84 Points
A great crowd pleaser, but not a well made PN. Bad QPR. I'm glad it was a gift. I would never buy. Jammy, sweet, very limited tannins and finish, one dimensional, will not improve beyond pop n'pour on day 1. It is, however, pleasant to drink because of jamminess and smoothness. Everybody loves a touch of sweet, but it's not a serious wine.
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8/1/2023 - rmcnees Likes this wine: 91 Points
Drank at Beach Walk Cafe, Henderson Beach Inn, Destin, FL.
Dark ruby colored, medium to full bodied, smooth and polished with nicely integrated full flavors of black raspberry, with hints of blueberry, subtle strawberry and cherry. There are tones of cinnamon, spice, sweet oak and tea on a lively acidity long finish with supple tannins.
https://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2023/07/belle-glos-clark-telephone-pinot-noir.html
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5/29/2023 - schicker-not Does not like this wine: 85 Points
Jammy PNP. Not enough tannins to age. Short on acid, as well. It’s a small step up from Meiomi. I would say that if you like soft and fruity, then this is your Pinot.
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5/14/2023 - gmac10 Likes this wine: 82 Points
Had it before and after aeration and I MUCH preferred it after aeration. Nice berries upfront and a bite on the end.
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5/6/2023 - WineBurrowingWombat Likes this wine:
Blind Santa Barbara pinot tasting (FermentedBeast's Lair): N: Rich red fruit, bathroom fresheners (not my note but it's there), mothball notes (mine and it's definitely there).
P: Similar rich red fruits but with some cloying manipulation. Fun and even has a bit of depth but it doesn't seem real.
I see why some people like it and some people hate it. Gonna take the PC stand here and say I'm somewhere in the middle :P
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4/29/2023 - GARDEN Likes this wine: 91 Points
Had with pork chops... My wife, who I refer to as the "Cab Girl", considers Belle Glos her favorite pinot noir winery.
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4/29/2023 - PME-TC Does not like this wine:
Jammy, tart juice, sweet. Very dark purple color. Does not exemplify pinot noir.
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4/8/2023 - Zinlady Likes this wine: 90 Points
Very dark juicy Pinot Noir nice nose. Went well with a filet.
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3/30/2023 - wino121 wrote: 80 Points
Unfortunately this wine doesn’t resemble a Pinot in color, smell, or taste..think cheap Syrah more like.
To get this type of extraction from any Pinot grape is a crime, hard to imagine and do!
Leave it to Wagner to ruin another beautiful grape.
Over priced swill.
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3/11/2023 - The Drunken Cyclist Likes this wine: 91 Points
Retail $55. Heavy bottle. We went to another of our favorite restaurants here in Houston, where this is on the list for $43. all cards on the table, I am not a fan of the Wagner Family wines, but Belle Glos is an exception. Sure, it is a big, fruity, big Pinot (yes, I realized I said "big" twice), but what else would one expect from the Wagners? Similar notes.
www.thedrunkencyclist.com
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2/27/2023 - tmiusa Likes this wine: 93 Points
Delicious! So approachable, a crowd pleaser. Seems to be the best appellation of the Belle Glos 2021.
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2/21/2023 - Fml wrote: 91 Points
Very very good smooth grteat fruit , no aftertaste we like it
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2/1/2023 - The Drunken Cyclist Likes this wine: 91 Points
Retail $55. Heavy bottle. I was flying solo as my wife had orchestra rehearsal and my son was knee deep in Xbox, er, homework. So I went to what has become our favorite restaurant. It was thus based on two points: 1. The food is pretty good even though the menu rarely (never?) changes. 2. The wine list is solid and the prices, at least for a few of the items on the list, were extremely well priced. Well, tonight, I realized that many of the wines had been increased by about 25%. Oh well. In the end, I decided on this Pinot from the Wagner family. As one might expect from the producers, this is a big boy with dark fruit, even on the verge of brooding, considerable weight, but also enough acidity to try to make it work. Look, if you like "earthy" and terroir driven Pinots, this ain't it, but if you want a full-throttle wine that might challenge your conception of "Pinot Noir", this fits the bill.
www.thedrunkencyclist.com
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1/5/2023 - Smksmk Likes this wine: 92 Points
Excellent. Red fruits including cherry, cranberry and raspberry jam. Spicy clove, cedar, baking spice, tobacco and subtle graphite. Rich texture, excellent and complex balanced structure.
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