Talley Rosemary's Pinots

Grouping for Talley Rosemary's Pinot tasting notes - end of 2006

• 2001 Talley Vineyards Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard 95 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Arroyo Grande Valley

  (9/28/2006)

  The first in my lineup of Talley Rosemary's Pinot tasting, it's hard to imagine that they're going to get better than this one. I'm not *that* much of a fan of old wines for the sake of old, but this one is an A - an incredibly perfumed nose of violets and violet roses (and I mean incredibly perfumed), tastes of strawberries, candied raspberries, pepper, and rhubarb, a nice, light, slightly tart, round mouthfeel, and a 25 second length all contribute to the ethereal sense of this wine, now 5 years old. It's hard to imagine that this wine is going to get any better; this is definitely one of the best Talley pinot's that I've had, and I've had plenty.

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• 2000 Talley Vineyards Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Arroyo Grande Valley

  (10/1/2006)

  Doesn't have the same high wire sense of verve that the 2001 did a few nights ago, but this wine is nonetheless quite good. This 2000 vintage is bigger than the 2001 (could this one be less advanced perhaps?) and shows darker fruit, with some black berries and plumminess mixed in the with the sprightly red fruit (strawberries, cherries, rhubarb) found in the 2001 version. This one also seems to be a bit clunkier, with the a slightly square attack and finish, though the length is quite long at 20 seconds and the acid is prominent enough to present a balanced package. The nose is good, though less apparent, and "smells" a bit stinky, and the wine has a bit of a sense of slightly chalky unresolved tannins that should dissipate in a year.
  
  All in, I'd say that this one might benefit from another year or two. Try next in Summer of 2007. Drink the 2001 in the meantime.

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• 1998 Talley Vineyards Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard 91 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Arroyo Grande Valley

  (10/4/2006)

  Kevin says that I should write "pretty good" about this wine, so I shall write that. Pretty good. That about sums it up. A decent, moderately aged nose with tastes of dried cherries, orange spices, orange peel, a good mouhtfeel, and a decent length. Nothing spectacular, but I think that this wine would have been better a year or two earlier. In comparison with the 2000 and 2001 vintages from last week, I'd say that this 1998 is on the fast evolutionary track, and I'd drink up now.

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• 1999 Talley Vineyards Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard 92 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Arroyo Grande Valley

  (10/13/2006)

  More primary and less "aged" than I remember, this bottle was tasting like a less developed wine. Incredible nose, good length, slightly tart but with a decent mouthfeel, this bottle tasted of ripe, black cherries and black pepper. Good length. Perhaps outstanding in a couple of years...

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• 2003 Talley Vineyards Pinot Noir Rosemary's Vineyard 94 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Arroyo Grande Valley

  (10/28/2006)

  A spectacular wine that opens "sappy young elegant" and becomes better over the course of a few hours. Has classic Rosemary's tastes of slightly metallic, slightly dried, rich red fruit with an incredible nose, a good but slight tart mouthfeel, and a good length. As much as I've liked the older Rosemary's that we've tasted over the course of the past few months, this young wine is a sure thing right now. And I'm not kidding.

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