The red wax is reminds me of that used on Maker's Mark bourbon; however the cork is exposed by a simple pull on the tab; so it is easier to open. The wax is easily recognized when shown in movies such as "The Age of Adeline". Often wonder if they had to pay for the use in the movie. This wine does not taste like the other Pinot Noir's I drink, but I found it very likeable and would recommend it. I did not get the cherry taste that I expect, but it had some very nice spice flavors in the cedar and clove category. A very concentrated wine with a nice long finish.
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Same rating as three years ago. More extracted than other Pinots. A good wine that drinks better alone (as I stated last time). This is pretty much the same as it was then-no evolution, no degradation. Probably OK for another year or two before it starts losing its luster.
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Medium dark ruby in colour, quite dark for a Pinot Noir due to the extracted style. Sweet aromas of red berries ( strawberries/raspberry ) & an almost candied sensation. On the palate bold, fruit forward, ripe/extracted red berries with spice, well integrated oak (almost caramel ) with medium to high acidity & medium soft tannins. The finish is long and with 14.6% ABV it’s difficult to to call this wine balanced, but it’s very pleasing on the palate & this Belle Glos style is what got me into Pinot Noir.
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Really nice wine. Paired well with jalapeno cheddar turkey burgers with pickled onions, avocado, and some chipotle mayo. In a nice place, but not in a rush to drink my last bottle.
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Darkest Pinot ever. Smells like a super extracted Pinot, or a Pdf. Can't tell what this is if blind. Rich, syrupy palate. Then some alch on the finish. Weird wine. Some deliciousness yet, feels not real.
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Bright deeper color. Very fruit forward Strong vanilla overtones. What I have come to expect from Belle Glos. More substantial than a lot of Pinots. Thanksgiving dinner. Nice wine.
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Belle Glos defines the term Fruit Forward when it comes to pinots. Thick with berries and cherries. This wine won’t be for everyone, but those who like there wines big and bold will love it.
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Very fruit-forward with a lot of cherry cola and oak. Nicely done for the style but I may hold off a year or two on the others hoping for more secondary notes. Rather high in alcohol content but not particularly hot.
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Very decent drinker. Mostly black fruits with some mid level acidity and no tannin to speak of but lacks a unique flavor profile compared to past years.
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I adored this wine when I first tasted, likely because it was very ripe and oaked (vanilla heavy for pinot). It is sweet. Probably would not love anymore.
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This was a gift and I hated to open it so soon and the bottle was so pretty with the wax, but it was worth it. Full bodied, rich dark fruit, long finish.
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Full bodied Pinot that sets it apart from its Las Altura sibling. Almost cab like with subtle spice notes. Color was a nice ruby with a nose of blue fruit. Had with a variety of Japanese food and worked well overall!
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People here have called this a cab of a pinot, and I think I agree. Very extracted wine that stands on its own as a cocktail wine. However, it is actually quite good with food as well, but I've paired it with red meat to date. Very red ruby color, very pronounced blue fruit flavors. If you're looking for cherry flavors a la Burgundy, this might not be your bottle of wine. But all in, it's a very good bottle of wine.
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Great wine. After good decant it was fruity and lost some acidity. Smooth finish. Great drinking wine with or without food. Never a bad choice. 2/12/2019-tasted a year later and did. Or like as much. PNP but thru aerator. A little acidic with stewed prune taste on background. Possibly will improve tomorrow or could be a bad bottle although cork looked fine and encased on wax. Would give 88 points today.
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Just as expected very ripe and extracted. Cherry syrup, vanilla extract, cassis, cola... Moderate structure and acid. Designed to be drank young and without food.
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Deep garnet to purple. Heavier bodied than most pinots. Low tannins and acidity and coats the tongue. Fruit forward with cherry, raspberry, blueberry and cola but also prominent amounts of smoke, licorice and leather. Smells like roasted smoked raspberries. Much more balanced and complex than a bottle I enjoyed in Utah 6 months ago. In a really good drinking window right now? I really enjoyed this bottle. 92-93!
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Very dark and purple, almost no translucence. The palate is sweet cherry-vanilla all day. The palate is quite similar. A bit hot and very much bright and sweet, it fits a certain profile but is simple, sweet, and won’t age. For me, that caps it at about 90. My friends said 92, but I’m sticking to my guns.
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Improved some since last bottle. A bit smoother, very dark with a touch of spice in mid palate. No tannin to speak of making it very drinkable on its own.
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As others have indicated, this is a heavy Pinot, with substantial fruit at this juncture. I am tempted to let this sit another couple of years in order to promote more integration and smoothness. Drinks better now alone than with traditional food pairings.
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This was a big bold forward full bodied wine, more like a Syrah or even a Zinfandel than a Pinot, very, much in the style that we favor. Dark deep scarlet colored, full bodied, rich, complex, concentrated layers blackberry, black raspberry and notes of black currant fruits accented by vanilla, nutmeg, tones of sweet caramel and strawberry, with hints of smoked meat, and pain grillé, yet this is nicely balanced, smooth and polished with refreshing acidity, velvety tannins and a hint of toffee lingering on the long finish.
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Deeper in color and more ruby/purple than one would expect from a Pinot Noir. The nose is clean, youthful, with raspberry, blackberry, smoky spices, toast and lots of vanilla oak. The nose definitely crosses over into Zinfandel or Shiraz territory. The palate is dry but very fruit forward, with medium acid, medium but soft tannins and high alcohol. This is thicker and fuller bodied than a typical Pinot. It is extremely smooth and polished, with a smooth, oaky finish. This is a Bourbon or Zin lover's Pinot Noir. I liked it well enough as a cocktail wine, but it would overpower most dishes that I would normally pair a PN with. It is drinking well now but could probably use a couple of years to settle down.
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Deep garnet to purple. First of 3 California reds at dinner in Park City, Utah. Heavier bodied than most pinots. Low tannins and acidity and coats the tongue. Fruit forward with cherry, blueberry and cola. Some creme brûlée type sweetness. Very smooth easy drinker. This and a bottle of 2014 Caymus were the overall family favorites for the trip.
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Bought 6 bottles at around $30 per bottle, and generally a fan of this style. My only other reference point is a 2014 Las Alturas, which was definitely a bigger and heavier pinot than this. This was PnP and drank over two nights. After night 1 I threw it in the fridge, some improvement on day 2, but overall this had more finesse and was lighter than the '14 alturas. Still would recommend, as I like this style.
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Let's start off by saying this needs more time in bottle. Period. It is a red fruit bomb on the tongue right now, on entry, with a beautiful hard pinot nose. Chilled it's impressive but short. Medium density for a pinot, pretty well balanced with a decent finish as it warms a bit. Good acidity on the back end. I like the structure after it warms. Cold out of the chiller at 55 it has almost zero finish. This is a very nice pinot but would like to see how it deepens and smooths out its slightly sharp edges over 5-7 years in bottle. I guess this commercial venture is dead bang on with the masses who will drink it for its fruit right now. I tend to like my pinots (and there are few) with some age to them. That's where the depth, concentrated flavors and smooth round feminine edges show the best.
Medium body, smooth, with mixed black and red fruits. Blackberry, raspberry and cherry. Easy drinker, but not as rich as the 2013. A couple of years in the cellar may help it further.
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This was an excellent wine -- although one that, to me, needed some bottle age to show better. (But I really prefer aged pinots). When Jen managed to pry the wax off the top of the bottle and open it, it showed big forward fruit (raspberries, blackberries, cherries), plus herbs and baking spice, and was slightly sweet - on the finish. I had it on its own, rather than with food, which may have been a negative, as I have notes from the 2013 vintage that show it paired well with baked salmon (with pistachios pesto and with dill) and with homemade Haleem.
It was a lovely and generous gift from Stacy.
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3/24/2024 - degrandcru wrote: 86 Points
Disappointing and plain. Ripe Cherry fruit, but lacks acidity and any "sous bois" notes for its age. Not really bad, but not interesting at all.
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10/25/2023 - george mullen Likes this wine: 91 Points
Very good reminds me of pinots from the seventies. Had with salmon. Wish I had more.
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10/22/2022 - Kentw Likes this wine: 90 Points
Easy drinking wine. Dark fruits and balanced but not extraordinary. Some prior years were better.
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12/10/2021 - johnmfedorko wrote: 92 Points
Pretty good wine....eminently drinkable
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4/24/2021 - Insomniakk2 wrote:
It’s a 10
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2/13/2021 - ahwt Likes this wine: 91 Points
The red wax is reminds me of that used on Maker's Mark bourbon; however the cork is exposed by a simple pull on the tab; so it is easier to open. The wax is easily recognized when shown in movies such as "The Age of Adeline". Often wonder if they had to pay for the use in the movie.
This wine does not taste like the other Pinot Noir's I drink, but I found it very likeable and would recommend it. I did not get the cherry taste that I expect, but it had some very nice spice flavors in the cedar and clove category. A very concentrated wine with a nice long finish.
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1/26/2021 - gew71walsh wrote: 90 Points
Same rating as three years ago. More extracted than other Pinots. A good wine that drinks better alone (as I stated last time). This is pretty much the same as it was then-no evolution, no degradation. Probably OK for another year or two before it starts losing its luster.
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12/27/2020 - ClaytonDave wrote: 88 Points
A bit fruit forward and sweet.
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7/1/2020 - CDT Likes this wine: 91 Points
Medium dark ruby in colour, quite dark for a Pinot Noir due to the extracted style.
Sweet aromas of red berries ( strawberries/raspberry ) & an almost candied sensation.
On the palate bold, fruit forward, ripe/extracted red berries with spice, well integrated oak (almost caramel ) with medium to high acidity & medium soft tannins.
The finish is long and with 14.6% ABV it’s difficult to to call this wine balanced, but it’s very pleasing on the palate & this Belle Glos style is what got me into Pinot Noir.
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6/17/2020 - sean7711 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Really nice wine. Paired well with jalapeno cheddar turkey burgers with pickled onions, avocado, and some chipotle mayo. In a nice place, but not in a rush to drink my last bottle.
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4/26/2020 - rojoloco Likes this wine: 90 Points
Ok. Took a good two hours to soften up. The Meiomi? Which is not as good, is more generous. Have more of these but won't buy more.
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3/27/2020 - Tsliwinski wrote: 93 Points
Beautiful pinot. Nice fruit, luscious tannins, smooth finish. Hopefully protective from corona.
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12/8/2019 - tplskylrk wrote:
Darkest Pinot ever. Smells like a super extracted Pinot, or a Pdf. Can't tell what this is if blind. Rich, syrupy palate. Then some alch on the finish. Weird wine. Some deliciousness yet, feels not real.
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6/8/2019 - Ratpack Likes this wine: 93 Points
Outstanding!
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5/26/2019 - Deryck Likes this wine: 90 Points
Good fruit flavors but a bit on the sweet side. Great crowd pleaser. I prefer the Los Alturas version of this wine.
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1/14/2019 - Kentw Likes this wine: 90 Points
Very nice with good balance of fruit and spice. Some aging helped.
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11/22/2018 - Redfisher Likes this wine: 92 Points
Light and fresh with medium fruit and some floral notes. Paired well with roast turkey at Thanksgiving
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11/22/2018 - UKCatFan Likes this wine: 90 Points
Bright deeper color. Very fruit forward Strong vanilla overtones. What I have come to expect from Belle Glos. More substantial than a lot of Pinots. Thanksgiving dinner. Nice wine.
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10/16/2018 - SumCellar wrote: 90 Points
Belle Glos defines the term Fruit Forward when it comes to pinots. Thick with berries and cherries. This wine won’t be for everyone, but those who like there wines big and bold will love it.
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9/29/2018 - kmack wrote:
Very fruit-forward with a lot of cherry cola and oak. Nicely done for the style but I may hold off a year or two on the others hoping for more secondary notes. Rather high in alcohol content but not particularly hot.
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8/27/2018 - Kentw wrote: 89 Points
Very decent drinker. Mostly black fruits with some mid level acidity and no tannin to speak of but lacks a unique flavor profile compared to past years.
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4/6/2018 - jwbuckman Likes this wine: 93 Points
I adored this wine when I first tasted, likely because it was very ripe and oaked (vanilla heavy for pinot). It is sweet. Probably would not love anymore.
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4/6/2018 - N8folsom wrote:
Very good, continue buying
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4/2/2018 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 93 Points
This was a gift and I hated to open it so soon and the bottle was so pretty with the wax, but it was worth it. Full bodied, rich dark fruit, long finish.
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3/22/2018 - swarup Likes this wine: 92 Points
Full bodied Pinot that sets it apart from its Las Altura sibling. Almost cab like with subtle spice notes. Color was a nice ruby with a nose of blue fruit. Had with a variety of Japanese food and worked well overall!
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3/20/2018 - cwiebe Likes this wine: 91 Points
People here have called this a cab of a pinot, and I think I agree. Very extracted wine that stands on its own as a cocktail wine. However, it is actually quite good with food as well, but I've paired it with red meat to date. Very red ruby color, very pronounced blue fruit flavors. If you're looking for cherry flavors a la Burgundy, this might not be your bottle of wine. But all in, it's a very good bottle of wine.
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3/14/2018 - mjdixon Likes this wine: 91 Points
Well balanced fruity wine with some complexity appearing after 30 mins or more
Favorite Belle Glos
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2/28/2018 - Mark4w Likes this wine: 88 Points
Great wine. After good decant it was fruity and lost some acidity. Smooth finish. Great drinking wine with or without food. Never a bad choice.
2/12/2019-tasted a year later and did. Or like as much. PNP but thru aerator. A little acidic with stewed prune taste on background. Possibly will improve tomorrow or could be a bad bottle although cork looked fine and encased on wax. Would give 88 points today.
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2/1/2018 - BigRedBearATX Likes this wine: 89 Points
Pours very dark for a pinot, and it has the flavor to match.
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1/15/2018 - MAXIMUM SATISFACTION wrote: 91 Points
Just as expected very ripe and extracted. Cherry syrup, vanilla extract, cassis, cola... Moderate structure and acid. Designed to be drank young and without food.
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1/4/2018 - ddemetri Likes this wine: 94 Points
Phenomenal pinot. Love it. Rich and interesting.
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12/31/2017 - RockyII wrote: 92 Points
Deep garnet to purple. Heavier bodied than most pinots. Low tannins and acidity and coats the tongue. Fruit forward with cherry, raspberry, blueberry and cola but also prominent amounts of smoke, licorice and leather. Smells like roasted smoked raspberries. Much more balanced and complex than a bottle I enjoyed in Utah 6 months ago. In a really good drinking window right now? I really enjoyed this bottle. 92-93!
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12/21/2017 - Scottlmatthews Likes this wine: 91 Points
Left open for 48 hours-then it started to show it inner beauty!
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12/16/2017 - Phredd wrote: 90 Points
Very dark and purple, almost no translucence. The palate is sweet cherry-vanilla all day. The palate is quite similar. A bit hot and very much bright and sweet, it fits a certain profile but is simple, sweet, and won’t age. For me, that caps it at about 90. My friends said 92, but I’m sticking to my guns.
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12/14/2017 - KendraPM wrote: 90 Points
Not as much fruit as I am used to.
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11/27/2017 - Kentw wrote: 88 Points
Not as good as last bottle. This one had some sharp edges that detracted from overall profile.
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10/7/2017 - Kentw Likes this wine: 90 Points
Improved some since last bottle. A bit smoother, very dark with a touch of spice in mid palate. No tannin to speak of making it very drinkable on its own.
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9/25/2017 - gew71walsh Likes this wine: 90 Points
As others have indicated, this is a heavy Pinot, with substantial fruit at this juncture. I am tempted to let this sit another couple of years in order to promote more integration and smoothness. Drinks better now alone than with traditional food pairings.
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9/23/2017 - rmcnees Likes this wine: 92 Points
This was a big bold forward full bodied wine, more like a Syrah or even a Zinfandel than a Pinot, very, much in the style that we favor. Dark deep scarlet colored, full bodied, rich, complex, concentrated layers blackberry, black raspberry and notes of black currant fruits accented by vanilla, nutmeg, tones of sweet caramel and strawberry, with hints of smoked meat, and pain grillé, yet this is nicely balanced, smooth and polished with refreshing acidity, velvety tannins and a hint of toffee lingering on the long finish.
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9/18/2017 - johnmfedorko Likes this wine:
Really tasted like a cabernet....not a pino
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9/15/2017 - skurtz Likes this wine: 91 Points
Great. For a CA Pinot Noir. ;-)
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9/3/2017 - TannicBeast wrote: 88 Points
Deeper in color and more ruby/purple than one would expect from a Pinot Noir. The nose is clean, youthful, with raspberry, blackberry, smoky spices, toast and lots of vanilla oak. The nose definitely crosses over into Zinfandel or Shiraz territory. The palate is dry but very fruit forward, with medium acid, medium but soft tannins and high alcohol. This is thicker and fuller bodied than a typical Pinot. It is extremely smooth and polished, with a smooth, oaky finish. This is a Bourbon or Zin lover's Pinot Noir. I liked it well enough as a cocktail wine, but it would overpower most dishes that I would normally pair a PN with. It is drinking well now but could probably use a couple of years to settle down.
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8/20/2017 - tfharris Likes this wine: 90 Points
Thick juice. A bit like a Zin some elements
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8/12/2017 - Morrissasson Likes this wine: 92 Points
Smooth, easy to drink, fruity, lots of cherries, some nice peppery notes. Kool-Aid (in a good way).
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7/24/2017 - RockyII Likes this wine: 91 Points
Deep garnet to purple. First of 3 California reds at dinner in Park City, Utah. Heavier bodied than most pinots. Low tannins and acidity and coats the tongue. Fruit forward with cherry, blueberry and cola. Some creme brûlée type sweetness. Very smooth easy drinker. This and a bottle of 2014 Caymus were the overall family favorites for the trip.
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7/23/2017 - sean7711 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Bought 6 bottles at around $30 per bottle, and generally a fan of this style. My only other reference point is a 2014 Las Alturas, which was definitely a bigger and heavier pinot than this. This was PnP and drank over two nights. After night 1 I threw it in the fridge, some improvement on day 2, but overall this had more finesse and was lighter than the '14 alturas. Still would recommend, as I like this style.
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7/19/2017 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
I can see why people would love them.
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6/21/2017 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 90 Points
Let's start off by saying this needs more time in bottle. Period. It is a red fruit bomb on the tongue right now, on entry, with a beautiful hard pinot nose. Chilled it's impressive but short. Medium density for a pinot, pretty well balanced with a decent finish as it warms a bit. Good acidity on the back end. I like the structure after it warms. Cold out of the chiller at 55 it has almost zero finish. This is a very nice pinot but would like to see how it deepens and smooths out its slightly sharp edges over 5-7 years in bottle. I guess this commercial venture is dead bang on with the masses who will drink it for its fruit right now. I tend to like my pinots (and there are few) with some age to them. That's where the depth, concentrated flavors and smooth round feminine edges show the best.
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6/1/2017 - Stevenwsims Likes this wine: 91 Points
Interesting. Tobacco and twizzlers?
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5/26/2017 - erictayl wrote: 88 Points
Nose dominated by vanilla oak. Almost like sticking your face in a bowl of vanilla ice cream. Palate of sweet fruit and little else. Not my style.
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5/25/2017 - Tsliwinski Likes this wine: 93 Points
great fruit forward pinot
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3/13/2017 - Kentw Likes this wine: 89 Points
Medium body, smooth, with mixed black and red fruits. Blackberry, raspberry and cherry. Easy drinker, but not as rich as the 2013. A couple of years in the cellar may help it further.
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3/4/2017 - TashNYC wrote: 91 Points
This was an excellent wine -- although one that, to me, needed some bottle age to show better. (But I really prefer aged pinots). When Jen managed to pry the wax off the top of the bottle and open it, it showed big forward fruit (raspberries, blackberries, cherries), plus herbs and baking spice, and was slightly sweet - on the finish. I had it on its own, rather than with food, which may have been a negative, as I have notes from the 2013 vintage that show it paired well with baked salmon (with pistachios pesto and with dill) and with homemade Haleem.
It was a lovely and generous gift from Stacy.
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2/11/2017 - larcin 1 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Smooth. Cindy loves
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