Second Sunday Group: 2008 Ken Wright Pinots (Fontina’s Italian Kitchen (MiY)): Double blind. Opens with notes of dark fruit, plum and chocolate, showing more ripeness than the first two wines. Medium tannins, with flavors of mixed fruit and plum with good underlying acidity. To this point these are all nicely balanced wines. As it opens it turns more red-fruited. Finishes well. 91+ pts.
My #3, Domino’s #1 Group #6, 54 pts
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Quick double decant, and open for a couple hours before drinking. Part of a blind tasting of 8 pinots from Burgundy, Oregon and CA. No detailed notes, but I loved this. Light, refined fruit, great acid. Classic Oregon pinot. Unfortunately I knew exactly what is was, even blind, due to the heavy bottle. A couple others correctly pegged Oregon initially, and then switched their guess to CA, perhaps swayed by the bottle weight.
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First impression on this is some kind of wild exotic forest or something. As it evolves it has a strong tea flavor, in a wine kind of way.... Some hints of vanilla, maybe something that reminds me of mushrooms, with a bit of bitterness on the finish. Very good but not among the best Ken Wright Pinots.
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Awesome now. 10 years is just right. Wonderful nose of fruit that were once bright and have grown softer and fonder with age. Just the right mix of acid, soft tannins and mild sweetness to make this really pleasurable. A great example of the Willamette valley, as is usually the case for Ken Wright's wines. Wish I had more.
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Wonderful maturing northern Willamette Pinot. Perfect integration of ripe fruit and soft tannins. Well balanced, complex, and good finish. Did not decant. Poured 8 ounces in two glasses on day 1. Wine continued to evolve over several hours. Still has fresh taste after 10 years, and should lay down another 5-10 years. Not the best QPR at $60, but still worth the splurge on special occasions.
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delicious. Was looking for a spicy pinot to go with blackened salmon and dark roux gumbo and this did not disappoint. Much more open than when I tried it about 6 years ago. Beautiful bouquet of fruit and spice, medium to full body with black fruit and pepper, long finish. Very favorable comments from dinner guests. Can't wait to finish the bottle.
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I think it smells like tea my wife says cherry vanilla. On the palate, definite cherry flavors, very tangy though, very spicy, very long finish. There is some kind of forest hints too. Very nice.
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this wasn't what i was expecting for 2008 OR PN. it was less structured and less interesting than i wanted. it was a safe wine without too much risk from winemaker.
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New Years Eve 2013: From a Magnum, this note is on leftovers the next morning, so it's been open for about 24 hours at this point. 13.7% ABV
Bright red cherries, hints of earthy funk, but not a whole lot of complexity. Finish is pretty short. Not sure if this is going to evolve much more, but it's a good bottle of wine.
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Pre Thanksgiving Pinot. Decent but bit disappointing. Tried a number of the Ken Wright single vineyards to compare to Cali Pinots and I'm going to stick with CA.
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Drinking better than the last bottle from a few months back. Full on the palate with notes of cherry and mushroom. Not as earthy or oaky as other KW wines but sweet with good acidity and structure.
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7/18/2021 - AllRed wrote: 91 Points
Second Sunday Group: 2008 Ken Wright Pinots (Fontina’s Italian Kitchen (MiY)): Double blind. Opens with notes of dark fruit, plum and chocolate, showing more ripeness than the first two wines. Medium tannins, with flavors of mixed fruit and plum with good underlying acidity. To this point these are all nicely balanced wines. As it opens it turns more red-fruited. Finishes well. 91+ pts.
My #3, Domino’s #1
Group #6, 54 pts
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4/3/2019 - JCGuthrie wrote: 92 Points
Quick double decant, and open for a couple hours before drinking. Part of a blind tasting of 8 pinots from Burgundy, Oregon and CA. No detailed notes, but I loved this. Light, refined fruit, great acid. Classic Oregon pinot. Unfortunately I knew exactly what is was, even blind, due to the heavy bottle. A couple others correctly pegged Oregon initially, and then switched their guess to CA, perhaps swayed by the bottle weight.
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11/11/2018 - ersmith Likes this wine: 94 Points
Had this side-by-side with the 2010. This is much smoother and fruit forward. The 2010 could rest a few more years.
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7/25/2018 - chitowncdpguy wrote:
First impression on this is some kind of wild exotic forest or something. As it evolves it has a strong tea flavor, in a wine kind of way.... Some hints of vanilla, maybe something that reminds me of mushrooms, with a bit of bitterness on the finish. Very good but not among the best Ken Wright Pinots.
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4/9/2018 - mac-eye Likes this wine: 94 Points
Awesome now. 10 years is just right. Wonderful nose of fruit that were once bright and have grown softer and fonder with age. Just the right mix of acid, soft tannins and mild sweetness to make this really pleasurable. A great example of the Willamette valley, as is usually the case for Ken Wright's wines. Wish I had more.
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3/29/2018 - wcf1946 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Wonderful maturing northern Willamette Pinot. Perfect integration of ripe fruit and soft tannins. Well balanced, complex, and good finish. Did not decant. Poured 8 ounces in two glasses on day 1. Wine continued to evolve over several hours. Still has fresh taste after 10 years, and should lay down another 5-10 years. Not the best QPR at $60, but still worth the splurge on special occasions.
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2/17/2018 - WinePT wrote: 90 Points
Moderate weight Pinot with smooth notes of plum, tea, a hint of vanilla, and spice on the finish.
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8/20/2017 - kanab ram Likes this wine:
Consistent with previous note. Excellent wine.
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6/12/2016 - jbaron wrote: 91 Points
A great, full, very fleshy wine. Not subtle but tasty.
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2/21/2016 - perlasteve wrote: 94 Points
delicious. Was looking for a spicy pinot to go with blackened salmon and dark roux gumbo and this did not disappoint. Much more open than when I tried it about 6 years ago. Beautiful bouquet of fruit and spice, medium to full body with black fruit and pepper, long finish. Very favorable comments from dinner guests. Can't wait to finish the bottle.
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2/6/2016 - chitowncdpguy wrote:
I think it smells like tea my wife says cherry vanilla. On the palate, definite cherry flavors, very tangy though, very spicy, very long finish. There is some kind of forest hints too. Very nice.
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1/31/2016 - Ridgerunner Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tremendous Oregon Pinot!
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9/8/2015 - kanab ram Likes this wine:
Outstanding! Loads of fruit, layered structure and balanced.
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9/22/2014 - chitowncdpguy wrote:
Delightful. Quite spicy with vibrant acidity and cranberry flavors. Very long finish.
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9/17/2014 - mdfuller wrote: 91 Points
way different than the last tasting. at this point, the '08 Nysa is drinking fabulous... so smooth and consistent across the entire taste
this bottle quickly disappeared in side-by-side with '08 Ayers Lewis Rogers
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12/8/2013 - mdfuller Likes this wine: 89 Points
this wasn't what i was expecting for 2008 OR PN. it was less structured and less interesting than i wanted. it was a safe wine without too much risk from winemaker.
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12/31/2012 - wineberg Likes this wine: 89 Points
New Years Eve 2013: From a Magnum, this note is on leftovers the next morning, so it's been open for about 24 hours at this point. 13.7% ABV
Bright red cherries, hints of earthy funk, but not a whole lot of complexity. Finish is pretty short. Not sure if this is going to evolve much more, but it's a good bottle of wine.
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11/23/2012 - yeti575rider wrote: 88 Points
Pre Thanksgiving Pinot. Decent but bit disappointing. Tried a number of the Ken Wright single vineyards to compare to Cali Pinots and I'm going to stick with CA.
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8/19/2012 - yasha wrote: 93 Points
great pinot. drinks very well now.
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4/12/2011 - kanab ram wrote:
Drinking better than the last bottle from a few months back. Full on the palate with notes of cherry and mushroom. Not as earthy or oaky as other KW wines but sweet with good acidity and structure.
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