5th Street Dinner Club "Pinot from around the world" Blind Tasting

Wines were tasted in two flights -- a west coast flight with one Oregon and five California wines from different AVAs and a "rest of the world" flight of wines from Burgundy and New Zealand. Tasting was conducted as single blind, with the emptied bottles on full display if one chose to look. Wines were transferred to generic bottles at least a couple of hours beforehand, so they did see a bit of air.

This flight had only one big surprise for me - the most expensive wine in the flight, the Talley Rosemary's, was clearly at or near the bottom of the pack. Perhaps it needs a lot more time (or a long decant for this tasting), but I tasted it again after the reveal and did not think it to be a great wine. The wine I brought, the 2008 Stefania, was the group's (and my) winner, edging out the 2007 BR Cohn by a small margin (which was my last place wine - go figure). Keep up the good work Stefania and Paul!

• 2007 Anglim Pinot Noir Fiddlestix Vineyard 88 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Sta. Rita Hills

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Quite fragrant nose showing some pencil lead and kirsch. On the palate, fairly complex flavors of cherry and spice, a little bit of a green underneath, with good balance. Long tannic and some stemmy flavors. Overall, a very enjoyable wine. My #3, group's #5.

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• 2008 Stefania Pinot Noir Santa Cruz Mountains 90 Points

  USA, California, Santa Cruz Mountains

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Fresh strawberry and a hint of oak on the very fragrant nose. On the palate, a big burst of bright fruit, oak, and spice. Nice balancing acidity. Long finish with some creamy vanilla and raspberry. My favorite wine of the flight. This should age well. My #1, group's #1.

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• 2008 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir 86 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Creamy vanilla oak and some dark cherry on the nose. On the palate, smooth and creamy, but slightly unfocused and lacking concentration and balancing acidity. Hollow mid-palate. Long finish primarily vanilla flavor but quite weak. I guessed a Sonoma wine, but was surprised this was Oregon by the flavor profile. My #5, group's #4.

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• 2007 Adelaida Pinot Noir HMR Estate Reserve 88 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Paso Robles

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Tight nose, a little vegetal and a floral component. On the palate, some prominent oak, but not offensive, very nice blueberry with good balance. Long and very pleasing finish. My #2, group's #3.

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• 2007 B.R. Cohn Pinot Noir Russian River Valley 85 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Creamy with a little alcohol showing on the nose. On the palate, prominent cola flavor, a little flat, lacks acidity. Dull finish. My #6, group's #2.

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• 2007 Talley Vineyards Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard 86 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Arroyo Grande Valley

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six domestic west coast Pinots. Tight nose with a kind of strange dank aroma. On the palate, simple cherry juice with some vanilla oak. Lacking in acidity. Long tannic finish with flavors of cherry juice. Not a bad Pinot at all, but I was quite disappointed when I found out what this wine was. My #4, group's #6.

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This flight was mostly a disappointment for me. The NZ wines were pretty mediocre as was the German Heger. The JM Boillot was also not showing very well. The Thibault Liger-Belair was easily the best wine in the flight by a huge margin. It's a very nice wine now and should age very well in the short to medium term. I should note that the first bottle of this was badly corked so a new bottle was substituted so it wasn't blind.

• 2007 Rippon Pinot Noir 87 Points

  New Zealand, South Island, Otago, Lake Wanaka

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Very fragrant nose with a strange mandarin orange aroma bordering on overpowering in an unpleasant way. On the palate, mandarin orange and tart cherry juice with good balance. Long finish of tart fruit. My #2, group's #6.

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• 2009 Burnt Spur Pinot Noir 86 Points

  New Zealand, North Island, Wairarapa, Martinborough

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Fairly musty nose with some dark fruit showing. On the palate, simple cherry and oak flavors with good balance and a pleasing finish. My #4, group's #2.

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• 2007 Thibault Liger-Belair Gevrey-Chambertin La Croix des Champs 91 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Gevrey-Chambertin

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. First bottle was badly corked and replaced by this one. Nose was fresh and vibrant cherry with some mushroom and damp earth. On the palate, tart cherry and layers of red fruit with good acidity and balance. Long finish with soft tannins. My #1, group's #1.

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• 2007 Dr. Heger Pinot Noir Sonett 86 Points

  Germany, Baden

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Nice and pleasing nose of cherry, spice, and a floral element. Palate showed dark fruit but was kind of flat and dull and quite tannic with a medium finish. My #3, group's #5.

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• 2007 Daniel Schuster Pinot Noir Selection 81 Points

  New Zealand, South Island, Canterbury, Waipara

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Nose of sweet caramel that really coated the nasal passages so that you could almost taste it - sickening really. Palate was overdone ripe and candied with a somewhat sickening finish. Didn't really enjoy this one very much. My #6, group's #3.

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• 2007 J.M. Boillot Pommard 1er Cru Les Jarollières 82 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Beaune, Pommard 1er Cru

  Tasted single blind in a flight of six non-domestic Pinots. Some strange earthy notes on the nose that defy description. On the palate, tight with acidity dominating and a sour finish. I think this is probably in a dumb phase right now. My #5, group's #4.

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