Very exotic nose of pineapples, mangos and minerals. Much like other 2009s I've had, there's a sappy tropical fruit component upon opening that mellows out a bit with air (so decanting isn't out of the question, here). With air, there's a graininess that develops on the mid-palate and the minerality takes off. Very nice Donnhoff.

Nose has violets, cured meats, some figs and sour cherry. The palate is densely packed together, with jammy peppered black fruits. The wine is lithe in feeling, but ballsy in its flavor.

Tasted blind. Light burgundy color with a really interesting nose. This was hard for me to place as a californian cabernet! Spicy nose with brambles, peppered radishes, and sour cherry. Mid-palate featured more sour cherries, some wet coffee grinds, and red florals. The finish had strong tannins and nice acidity. While not what I'd place as a typical california cabernet, this was thoroughly enjoyable to me.

Very young wine which was a bit monolithic. Tones of white flowers, intense lanolin and honeyed pears form the aromatic profile at first. The palate was a bit thin...showing pears, apples, and toasted grains. The palate didn't have the weight or complexity on Day 1 that I expected, but I have plenty left to track over the next 2 days.

If tasted blindly, I wouldn't have pegged this for a Bien Nacido pinot noir. Awesome, spicy, nose of sour cherries, radishes, and peppered cranberries. The palate started off a bit thin and acidic, but with air it's complexity increased. Very nice minerality on the palate with subtle red fruits, pepper, violets, and dried roses. Took a bit to come around for me, but I really enjoyed what the wine morphed into.