Pinot Noir from the main regions

Everyone stepped up for this tasting of Pinot Noir, but our gracious hosts certainly exceeded all expectations by cooking a delicious meal and serving 3 wines. Wow!

• 2012 Far Niente Chardonnay 91 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  Pop and pour, drank a glass at a wine dinner. This has tasty floral golden fruit. There is a definite malolactic taste that makes it creamy and buttery. Yet it remains lightweight. Stylistically, this is middle-of-the-road, it is not flashy and it is not dull. Good balance.

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• 1991 Georges Noellat Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Les Chaumes 92 Points

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru

  A 1.5 hour decant, drank a glass at a wine dinner. The color is mature dark brownish red, semi-translucent. Tar and earth dominate the nose. On the palate, some tangy fruit in addition to the dark earth. Very complex, slightly raisiny. The palate is light to the point of being a little thin. The complexity here is impressive, and no doubt this is Burgundy.

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• 1998 Arcadian Pinot Noir Bien Nacido Vineyard 93 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Maria Valley

  Pop and pour, drank a glass at a wine dinner. This is my first Arcadian pinot, and it did not dissapoint. Clearly old world, with a fair amount of zippy fruit still present. I think this is drinking beautifully right now. There is a lot of earth, and it is quite Burgundian. Will this improve? Maybe, I don't know.

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• 2004 Rex Hill Pinot Noir Loie's Block Maresh Vineyard 91 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Dundee Hills

  Pop and pour, drink a small glass at a wine dinner. This pinot is fresh and lively. Tangy acidity, some chocolate, fresh cream, damp earth. It might be a little light due to age.

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• 2009 Adelsheim Pinot Noir Vintage 32 92 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley, Chehalem Mountains

  Pop and pour, drank a small glass at a wine dinner. This wine is slightly candied, with soft round fruit. It is supple and voluptuous. It is surprisingly smooth. Although there are a lot of fruit components, it doesn't offer a lot of complexity beyond that. Perhaps it is indeed too young, although I don't understand how a wine this smooth has the stuffing to age. Still, very well made and so easy to keep drinking it.

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• 2006 Sineann Pinot Noir Reserve Resonance Vineyard 90 Points

  USA, Oregon, Willamette Valley

  Pop and pour, drank a glass at a wine dinner. This has fluffy fruit, and is slightly on the sweet side. Quite fresh. It would appear that their glass stoppers don't really let the wine age as expected?

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• 2010 Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru Clos de la Maréchale

  France, Burgundy, Côte de Nuits, Nuits St. Georges 1er Cru

  1.5 hour decant. This wine is too young. Peppery, tannic, not giving up much. Hold.

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• 2012 Kistler Pinot Noir Cuvée Natalie Silver Belt 87 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast

  Pop and pour, drank a small glass at a tasting. Textbook California flavor profile. Rather bold. Alcoholic, not that interesting. I'm not drinking the koolaid here.

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• 2001 Château Rieussec 95 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  Pop and pour, drank a small glass at the end of a wine dinner. This wine has the light delicious elegance that I've often found in Yquem. It simply has a life of its own, and makes you want to keep taking another sip. It is hard to put down. The complexity on this bottle was better than one 6 months ago, but it is still clearly a baby. Nice spice, a great balance between acidity and sweetness. If this wine does evolve in the same way that the 1988 and 1990 have, it is going to be a rockstar in 10 years.

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No voting was taken, but it was clear that the stylistic preferences of the group vary a bit, as evidence by the conversation and the wines brought. But everyone agreed that the Rieussec was gangbusters.