December 15, 2019 - Currants, berries and cherries with earthy core. Finishes with some strong tobacco overtones.
September 24, 2015 - Hot Damn, this was oven shitten' good! The 08' kites rest is an iffy wine but this stormy terrace vineyard is off the hook! Meow! I cannot believe how special this was when compared to the kites rest. Over indulging clouded serious notes, but this was up with some of the best pinot I have had. Good blend of burgundy and Sonoma coast style. Not a ton of spice or cola like a RRV, but earthy, balanced and not over-extracted or commercial. Served with coconut braised chicken from this month's bon appetite cover recipe. Recipe rocked but this out-shown the meal. Bravo!
June 26, 2015 - Decanted approximately an hour before drinking. My initial impression of the nose is that a lot of the '08 vintage smoke has mellowed with the age; a huge plus. Overall, I still get the smoke that is now more integrated, along with mushroom, crushed fresh tarragon, blackberry and black cherry. Dark and earthy, but getting some heat as well.
The fresh tarragon comes through instantly on the palate, followed by ultra ripe cherry, and a mid palate of smoke/barbeque that starts to overwhelm. After the midpalate transition, due to the smoke and ripe fruit, this wine becomes almost Syrah-like in its meatiness on the finish. You can tell that a talented winemaker did his best with the fruit that was harvested in a year that many A.V. producers didn't release Pinots.
Overall, I'm docking this wine due not to its own fault, but because of the fires in 2008. I love that the producer still produced a wine from this year and released it so I can get a sense of the unique vintage characteristics. Because of that, it's "interesting" in a way that's not necessarily good nor bad.
May 22, 2014 - This wine continues to get better. Great showing of earth and spices.
Absolutely wonderful wine.
January 25, 2014 - Some bitterness on back end. Will open another bottle soon to validate this tasting note.
May 11, 2013 - Even than a year ago.
September 15, 2012 - Earthy with lots of smoke on the nose. Too much smoke in the glass after opening, but changed after an hour or so. Then the earth tones and fruit came forward. Dark berries and nice terroir. Great balance.
August 24, 2012 - This is seriously impressive stuff. I was expecting much less for the $30 tariff, and this outperformed most $60+ domestic pinots I've tried in the past 2 years. Very complex. Very well-balanced despite the listed alcohol # (14.8%). I didn't get any of the heat. Nose is dark red fruit, mocha, smoke (wildfires?), some mushroom/earth. The mouthfeel was silky, and I'm trying to find more of this for a weekly drinker.
February 24, 2012 - Black Kite is quickly becoming one of my favorites wines, almost everything they put out is excellent. 2008 was a challenging year for Anderson Valley with all the wild fires Black Kite still shines with a spectacular wine. The nose is loaded with dried celery reeds and beef jerky all wrapped around by spring flowers. In the mouth tannins are strong with burnt earth and cedar. This is not the fruit Pinot Noir lovers but it has the complexities of the $100 wines.
Very good value in the $40 range.
Remember you don't drink the label.
May 28, 2011 - Really good stuff. Medium body, tends towards more savory (forest floor, spice) as opposed to fruit. Good intensity of flavor.