June 6, 2019 - Cellar clean-up. We had this a year back or so and it drank much better with some bottle age.
June 18, 2018 - Warm pinot fruit with some barrel spice and a little cherry cola.
March 19, 2018 - Tasted double blind I guessed Sonoma pinot, but only because it didn't seem like anything else- not that it was particularly pinot-y. My wife described it as French bistro carafe wine. Yup.
November 27, 2017 - This is quite tasty. Nice tart, red fruit, clean and pure. It has a relaxed swallow showing the red fruit, dusty mineral, and some spice.
March 3, 2017 - Don't know much about this wine but not nearly as good as the Zepaltas-labeled pinots. Much more four-square with no subtlety and little elegance. Has some cinammon flavors, a little fruit, and though it saw just 15% new oak, overt oak.
September 9, 2016 - A really solid QPR pinot. When Ryan get these special deals on high quality fruit, these are pretty close to a must buy as there is.
April 6, 2016 - I guess maybe I am a hard grader, but I didn't like this wine as much as some on CT (OR as much as I've liked other Zepaltas PNs). I got tart notes of cherry, pomegranate, orange and a little vanilla on the finish. I didn't pair all that well with food, either. (Note from memory, so I can't remember what we had). Perhaps it will show better with 1-2 years of bottle age? We paid $23.33 with free shipping: not great QPR for that. I think age 1-2 years and cross your fingers. We didn't buy more after tasting -- but we DO have a lot of PN at our house.
July 28, 2015 - Lovely wine from the Sebastopol Hills. Bright cherry and tart pomegranate. Fairly primary nose, but a bit of cedar and spice as well. Not a lot of stuffing, but there was a slight dusty tannic presence on a light bodied frame. Very close in quality to the Rhys Family Farm drunk alongside it, though the Rhys had the edge blind.
July 6, 2015 - Popped and poured. Medium ruby color. Nose of ripe cherry, cranberry and a bit of orange rind with some sweet oak notes coming through. A touch of heat on the nose as well which surprised me for a wine listed at 13.5% abv. Similar flavors on the palate with a slightly candied red fruit flavor profile and more oak with a little vanilla on the back end. Medium acid, medium bodied but finishes short. A tasty pinot that would work well in a backyard BBQ setting with a slight chill on it but it is a tad simple from a flavor perspective.
July 5, 2015 - Consumed over 2 nights. This wine is clearly a value-oriented pinot. It showed as a fruity, slightly flamboyant and flabby pinot that tried its best not to offend. It is better than most bottlings at this price range.