Cornerstone Cellars Stepping Stone Cabernet Franc 2012
I don’t see a lot of varietally labeled Cab Franc coming out of the Napa Valley. And it’s a different animal altogether from the CFs from the Loire Valley or even from Washington State. Expect a wine that is richer, more robust and concentrated, with a very nearly opaque garnet robe and enveloping notes of […]
Trisaetum Wichmann Dundee Estate Pinot Noir 2013
Trisaetum’s 2013 Whichmann Dundee Estate Pinot Noir is sourced from the winery’s smallest estate vineyard, at just under nine acres. It’s also at high elevation and has classic Dundee Hills volcanic Jory soils. It’s a bit masculine in expression, with robust notes of espresso and mocha followed by forest floor, underbrush and spry red berries. […]
Trisaetum Pinot Noir Estates Reserve 2011
Trisaetum Pinot Noir Estates Reserve” width=”200″ height=”200″ /></a>My pick of Trisaetum’s Pinot Noirs, the 2011 Estates Reserve is comprised of 13-20 barrels that are aged 11 months on French oak and offers elegant, complex aromatics. Dried mint, bittersweet chocolate, and lively orange zest notes lead into a wine that is bright, yet balanced. The fruit […]
Raptor Ridge Chehalem Mountains Estate Pinot Noir 2012
I’ve enjoyed tasting through Raptor Ridge’s current releases, which always strike me as being produced in a manner that is both thoughtful and sensitive. That being said, the aromatics on this 2012 Chehalem Mountains Estate Pinot Noir are heady, so much so, I can pick up lush black cherry notes wafting from the glass some […]
de Lancellotti Famiglia Pinot Noir 2013
de Lancelotti’s 2013 Famiglia Pinot Noir is a blend of Pommard and Clone 777, and offers a delicate burst of rose petals, stemmy raspberries, anise, and cola. It’s slim and nimble on the palate, with a kind of wiry tartness adding lift to cranberry, spice, twig tea and forest notes. Perhaps what impresses me most […]
de Lancellotti La Sorella Pinot Noir 2014
I had the pleasure of tasting the 2014 ‘La Sorella’ Pinot Noir with winemaker, Paul De Lancellotti. La Sorella is the winery’s entry level label, priced at about $25.00, it offers classic a Willamette Valley profile—rose petals, crab apples, and stemmy raspberry with a touch of earthen, decomposing soil. On the palate, cranberries and red […]
Wildstock Pinot Noir Oregon Crafted Wine 2013
Wildstock is a Scott Paul label, as such the 2013 is classic Oregon Pinot. It’s delicate and refined, with easy layers of raspberries, iron ore, baking spice and a pleasing top note of Dutch process cocoa powder. Equally light and nimble on the palate, with an alcohol level set at 13.5% ABV. Sample Scott Paul […]
de Lancellotti Lachini Vineyard Pinot Noir 2013
de Lancellotti Lachini Vineyard Pinot Noir 2013 presents a fresh face—one that is composed of feminine, slightly stemmy raspberries and dewy rose petals. The nose is a bit deceptive, because this intriguing 2013 shows more concentration than one might expect, with caressing, silky layers of Rainier cherries, red forest berries and cranberries swathed in a […]
Scott Paul Pinot Noir La Paulée 2012
The expression of the Scott Paul La Paulée Pinot Noir is very much in line with what I would expect from the 2012 vintage in the Willamette Valley. A year with textbook growing conditions has endowed this Pinot with suitably lush red-fruit notes—black cherries and crushed raspberries are underpinned by notes of iron, forest floor, […]
Forge Cellars Harvest Ridge Vineyard Finger Lakes Riesling 2014
The first impression is one of petrol and rubber ball on the nose, accented by d’Anjou pear, lemon drop and early spring blossoms. It’s as lean and wiry as I’ve come to expect from Riesling grown in the Finger Lakes region—perhaps even a shade more so—clearly Forge is pushing the envelop in terms of acidity […]