The 2006 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir is a young wine and by all rights I should have probably let it sit in my cellar for another year or so.However, the cork was popped…..
Light red and translucent color which is almost “burgundian”, much lighter than one might expect from a California Pinot Noir given their general reputation for being big, dark, and jammy.
Immediately out of the bottle, the most notable aromas are red berry, herbal notes and spices with a hint of cola. After a fair amount of swirling in the glass, the alcohol (14.8% as labeled on the bottle) shows itself and doesn’t fade away immediately. This was a major give-away that the wine was a bit young as the alcohol hadn’t had time to “burn off.”
The spice was also evident on the taste. The best feature of this wine and one that really makes it stand out is its smooth and refined medium bodied texture. Fruit seems to be a mix of strawberry and raspberry. Soft and medium long finish but one marked by a certain sense of heat from the alcohol.
I have little experience with aging California Pinot Noirs but this is one that I think could use some bottle age for a couple of reasons. First is to burn off some of the alchohol that’s evident up front. The second is that this wine has the earmarks of being a soft and elegant wine and a couple years will just enhance these qualities even more.
Luckily, I have a couple more bottles in the cellar to follow.
No comments:
Post a Comment