External search
Google (images)
Wine Advocate
Wine Spectator
Burghound
Wine-Searcher
Vintages
2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
Show more
From this producer
Show all wines
All tasting notes
|
| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 93.1 pts. and median of 93 pts. in 94 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by SCosgrove on 4/18/2024 & rated 93 points: Just delicious! (245 views) | | | Tasted by buckeye76 on 3/31/2024 & rated 95 points: Still deep red/purple color and even better than our last tasting two years ago. Blueberries, blackberries, black raspberries and cherries with some minerality in the nose and flavor. Very well balanced. an elegant wine, nice acidity, complex, great mouthfeel, medium to full bodied, and a long lingering finish. A perfect pairing with our grilled Easter turkey and trimmings. (321 views) | | | Tasted by ruin28 on 3/8/2024 & rated 94 points: The wine looks ruby colored. The legs are medium. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like strawberry, blackberry, raspberry, plum and lavender. It tastes like blackberry, raspberry, coconut and vanilla. The body is light/medium. The wine has smooth texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has medium acidity. (382 views) | | | Tasted by galewskj on 12/11/2023 & rated 93 points: Annual holiday get-together (St. Genevieve): This was a good showing for this producer. Balanced, clearly acidic but the fruit is vibrant and holds up to the acid. This is a great expression of Sonoma pinot. (970 views) | | | Tasted by itsallgone on 9/3/2023 & rated 92 points: I agree with Dietz, stewed fruits. One person said it reminded him of an Amarone. Got better i with more time.
The funny thing is, another bottle of this from the same case I opened last week, was superb, bright and fresh and could last several more years. Bottle variation? (848 views) | | | Tasted by mclanew on 7/23/2023 & rated 95 points: Popped and poured. Beautiful wine. Pretty floral nose. The wine is mid medium bodied with flavors of cherry, cranberry, minerals and spice. Very elegant and lacey with complex layering. This is still very youthful and can age for years to come. (723 views) | | | Tasted by deetz on 3/12/2023 & rated 91 points: Opened this to celebrate a friend's milestone, so no formal notes.
At first was pretty closed and had a touch of a stewed fruit quality, but opened up after 30-60 minutes. Nice red fruit and minerality.
I enjoyed this wine, but I will admit that it felt on the decline, which inspired me to also open up a bottle of 2013 Occidental SWK Vyd., fearing that my handful of remaining bottles may be starting to go to waste. The SWK was a completely different animal and had so much more life to it. My reason to include this anecdote is that perhaps my experience with this specific bottle of 2012 Cuvee Catherine was a bit of a fluke, or perhaps this bottling just reached maturity much faster. I will leave that judgment call up to you, but me personally, if I had any remaining bottles of 2012 Catherine, I would drink up sooner rather than later. (1112 views) | | | Tasted by gsiokis on 10/1/2022 & rated 95 points: At 10 years this wine is singing. Easily the WOTN for us. Bested a 2017 R-M Summa Old Vines. Dinner at GunShow in Atlanta.
Previous note...the additional 3.5 years in bottle have really helped.
Decanted for about an hour then poured back into the bottle. Truthfully, my first couple of sips I was thinking I was going to score it in the high 80's....Then had it with our meal and it totally changed my opinion. Similar to other TN's - Cherry, spice, well balanced and long finish. Good acidity. Still have some left in the bottle and will taste again tomorrow night. My rec: Decant for at least two hours.....and have it with a nice meal!
Update: Finished off the bottle tonight. Slightly better today than yesterday. Possibly 1/2 - 1 point higher. (1556 views) | | | Tasted by bayareadodgerfan on 9/16/2022 & rated 93 points: This is a really big wine - a big bold california style of Pinot. Tons of ripe raspberry, strawberry and red plum fruit aromas and flavors, on top of great oak notes of clove, allspice and cedar. Medium + acid and soft medium tannin provide needed structure. This can age a while longer - really beautiful glass of pinot. (1295 views) | | | Tasted by RJWallis on 8/14/2022 & rated 94 points: Always a crowd pleaser, in a very good place now. (1369 views) | | | Tasted by cadamson on 6/9/2022: Would have been much better on a cold night, instead of a 110 degree day. Well made, a nice taste profile, still somewhat youthful, but just too big/rich for a pinot and needing some more acidity (for my tastes). (1463 views) | | | Tasted by buckeye76 on 6/5/2022 & rated 94 points: Blueberries, blackberries, black raspberries and cherries with some minerality in the nose and flavor. An elegant wine, medium to full bodied, nice structure, and a long lingering finish. (1289 views) | | | Tasted by hsacks on 5/28/2022 & rated 94 points: Even richer and more complex than the 9/15/19 bottle. (1013 views) | | | Tasted by silhouette88 on 2/19/2022 & rated 89 points: Aroma: strawberries, cherries, guava, menthol, cola, herbal and smoky notes.
Palate: plums, strawberries, black cherries, medium-bodied mouthfeel, light tannins, bright acidity with a long finish. Had this back in June 2016, and was more fanatic about this bottle than now. The vibrancy of the fruit is starting to decline and the wine in general is too mellow for my liking. Not a terrible wine, but not great either. 89 (1253 views) | | | Tasted by galewskj on 11/11/2021 & rated 89 points: Mixed bag (The Kenwood): Two previous bottles were substantially better than this one. It seemed a bit disjointed and there was some alcohol present. I agree with rocknroller that this wine seems to be on the downward slope, based on a sample size of 1 bottle. (1724 views) | | | Tasted by I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine on 11/11/2021 & rated 91 points: Luis rides again @ The Kenwood: PnP - This wine was a disappointment. The wine initially came across as disjointed, a little hot (alcoholic) and showed muted fruit. However, with additional time in the glass, the fruit started to emerge, the alcohol subsided and it it seemed to start to come together, finally showing off rich cherry and bramble. I would say this started out at 85, but later wound up at around 91. This leads me to believe I should wait a couple more years for my other bottles (although it is possible this was just an off bottle) I have three more, so I will likely open one in 2022 and see where it is at. 91 tonight at its best. (2078 views) | | | Tasted by rocknroller on 11/11/2021 & rated 88 points: Mixed WTDS at The Kenwood (The Kenwood, Mpls, MN): Dark red color. PNP, followed a glass for an hour plus. Full bodied with dried cranberries, vanillin, rhubarb, hot, spicy and oaky with gritty tannins. Didn't really show well tonight. My feeling is this has had its day and we're sinking, but others thought it needed more time. (1725 views) | | | Tasted by rustyRudy on 8/8/2021 & rated 94 points: Went neck and neck with the Elizabeth. Very similar, for me not quite the pizazz, (1951 views) | | | Tasted by andrewdodd86 on 8/8/2021 & rated 98 points: Beach 2021; 8/7/2021-8/14/2021 (Kiawah Island, SC): Darker fruit, more plum/fig on a black cherry profile. Blue fruit notes as well. Better depth/complexity, staying power and palate coating fruit. Still tart cherry but much more serious than the Kistler Natalie. (1686 views) | | | Tasted by bonedoc on 6/4/2021: Funny. 1st bottle was balanced and delicious, 2nd bottle was oxidized, and this bottle was good, but slightly off balance .. acidity was cloying. Hmmm. (1403 views) | | | Tasted by jwalkuro on 5/26/2021 & rated 93 points: Medium ruby color with rim variation.
Candied strawberry with well integrated oak touch.
It would be good to drink a little cold in early summer. (1340 views) | | | Tasted by bonedoc on 1/31/2021 flawed bottle: Oxidized (1740 views) | | | Tasted by BastardMontrachet on 1/24/2021: Ung i smaken med en skarp syra som följer med hela eftersmaken, god och fin frukt, väldigt burgundisk (1517 views) | | | Tasted by Bathtub58 on 1/1/2020 & rated 91 points: No note taken. I remember thinking this had good depth that wasn't quite showing. 91-92. (2645 views) | | | Tasted by Bathtub58 on 12/25/2019 & rated 92 points: Coravin 1/3 bottle into decanter. Consumed over 30 minutes. Beautiful aromas of red/blackcherry, roses, and spice. Flavors of tart red fruits followe by light spice that transitions into a moderately long finish of red fruits and roses. Light-medium body. Drinking okay, but lacking the depth I hoped would follow that gorgeous nose. I suspect this will continue to improve over the mid-term. 92-94. (2312 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, Sonoma, Anderson Valley and Beyond: New Releases (Jan 2015) (1/1/2015)
(Occidental (formerly Kistler) Pinot Noir Occidental Station Cuvée Catherine Sonoma Coast) Subscribe to see review text. | By Antonio Galloni
Vinous, Sonoma and Beyond: New Releases (Feb 2014)
(Occidental (formerly Kistler) Pinot Noir Occidental Station Cuvée Catherine Sonoma Coast) Subscribe to see review text. |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous. (manage subscription channels) |
| Occidental Producer websitePinot Noir Varietal character (Appellation America) | Varietal article (Wikipedia)
Pinot Noir is the Noble red grape of Burgundy, capable of ripening in a cooler climate, which Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot will not reliably do. It is unpredictable and difficult both to grow and to vinify, but results in some of the finest reds in the world. It is believed to have been selected from wild vines two thousand years ago. It is also used in the production of champagne. In fact, more Pinot Noir goes into Champagne than is used in all of the Cote d'Or! It is also grown in Alsace, Jura, Germany, the U.S., Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Romania, Switzerland, Austria, Croatia, Serbia, Italy, and so forth, with varying degrees of success.
Pinot Noir is one of the world's most prestigious grapes. It is very difficult to grow and thrives well in France, especially in Champagne and Burgundy. Pinot Noir thrives less in hot areas, is picky on soil, and deserves some oak storage.
Pinot Noir, or Blauburgunder / Spätburgunder in German, is a blue grapevine - and, as the German name suggests, the grape comes originally from Burgundy in France.
The grape, which thrives in calcareous soils, is used primarily for the production of red wine, and it is widely regarded as producing some of the best wines in the world. The wine style is often medium-bodied with high fruit acidity and soft tannins. It can be quite peculiar in fragrance and taste, and not least in structure - which may be why it is referred to as "The Grapes Ballerina".
Pinot Noir is also an important ingredient in sparkling wines, not least in champagne since it is fruity, has good acidity and contains relatively little tannins.
The grape is considered quite demanding to grow. The class itself consists of tightly packed grapes, which makes it more sensitive to rot and other diseases.
Pinot Noir changes quite easily and is genetically unstable. It buds and matures early which results in it often being well ripened. Climate is important for this type of grape. It likes best in cool climates - in warm climates the wines can be relaxed and slightly pickled.
In cooler climates, the wine can get a hint of cabbage and wet leaves, while in slightly warmer regions we often find notes of red berries (cherries, strawberries, raspberries, currants), roses and slightly green notes when the wine is young. With age, more complex aromas of forest floor, fungi and meat emerge.
In Germany, Switzerland, Austria and Hungary, it often produces light wines with less character. However, it has produced very good results in California, Oregon and New Zealand.
With its soft tannins and delicate aroma, it is excellent for white fish, chicken and light meat. For the stored wines you can serve small game. Classic duck breast is a matter of course, a Boeuf Burgundy and Pinot Noir are pure happiness.
Pinot Noir loses quality by over-harvesting.
Pinot Noir is prone to diseases, especially rot and mildew. Viruses cause major problems especially in Burgundy.
Pinot Noir are large round grapes with thin skins. Relatively high in alcohol content. Medium rich tannins and good with acid.
As a young person, Pinot Noir has a distinctly fruity character such as raspberries, cherries and strawberries.
A mature Pinot Noir, the taste is different. Cherry goes into plum and prune flavors. It smells of rotten leaves, coffee, moist forest floor and animal wine. This must be experienced.
In warm climates you find boiled plum, some rustic, little acid.
If the grapes are over-grown, the wine will be thin, with little color and flavor.USAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Sonoma CountyMendocino CountySonoma Coast * Sonoma Coast AVA (Wikipedia)
* Sonoma Coast AVA (Wine Institue) |
|
