1995 Bouchaine Pinot Noir Reserve

Community Tasting Notes (2)

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  6/9/2004 - whostler wrote:

  The wine opens with a brickish red color, looking just like the fully mature Pinot it is. On the nose hints of muted cherry are matched by understated sour cherry and red fruit flavor on the palate. There is also a very slight earthy or roasted note that adds a bit of complexity and nuance. The tannins are fully resolved and the wine drinks incredibly smoothly with no structural components like acid or oak sticking out. This has remained perfectly balanced in its maturity. This is not profound wine but this is very good Pinot Noir drinking absolutely perfectly at full maturity and was a great pleasure last night. Yum. This bottling in 750ml format may very well be over the hill so some caution may be in order.

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  4/13/2003 - whostler wrote:

  Purchased directly from the winery in February 2003. I would have avoided most ’95 Cali Pinots in 750s as being over the hill but I was interested in how a reserve bottling in magnum format would work out (especially at this great price). Boy, did it work out. This bottle was a testament to the aging capability of wine in large formats. I pulled the bottle out for my daughter’s birthday party today and opened it at around 12:30PM. It was ever so slightly closed at the beginning but very quickly started drinking quite nicely within 5-10 minutes. After the first pours I put a stopper in and put it on (not in) some ice as it was a warmish day. Fully integrated tannins, acid and oak with fruit still in existence, excellent balance. Later some nice barnyard, burgundian notes although no great hidden complexity to be found. Here’s the kicker: it developed a little in the first hour, stayed right on peak the next two hours and only started to fall off ever so slightly in the fourth hour when I drank the last of the bottle. It drank well from 12:30 to 4:30.There were no particular tendencies toward hedonistic pleasures or complexity and finesse; just nice, well-made pinot with absolutely no flaws to be found (isn't that enough?). This was a bottle that served perfectly in its allotted role as a wine that pleased the non wine geeks was well as this wine geek, lasted through the entire bottle with no real degradation in flavor and didn’t break the bank.

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