I don't drink Pinot, but . . .

[Merrill_Lindquist]

@Frank Drew

Jason,

I haven’t had a chance to try Brian’s wine, but have you had an Arcadian Garys’ Vineyard (I’m particularly thinking about the 2001)?

Frank - I had my first Arcadian a few weeks ago (and posted a TN here, along with a couple of other wines). Here is a copy of my TN on that 2001 Gary’'s :
Next up was a 2001 Arcadian Gary’s Pinot. I was not familiar with this bottling, but my friends were excited for me to try it, and I can see why. A bit of earth on the nose, and a light color perhaps indicating its age. The palate was pure Pinot, not candied or overtly rich but with light spice - subtle yet complex, improving with each pour. In a very, very nice place right now: if I owned this wine, I would be drinking it up as (for me) this is in a perfect place. Enjoyed with our mid courses of risotto with chanterelles.

And as to the OP, you are probably headed down the same slippery slope I have gone down. I used to not like Pinot at all, and then I had one I liked, and another, and another…

[Frank_Drew]

Thanks for re-posting your note, Merrill, and it pretty much mirrors my impression of the wine – very Pinot Noir, complex and very well balanced.

[Arv_R]

@Brian Loring

@Paul Flynn

Bravo Brian!

Thanks Paul! Not to discount the other great recommendations already listed, but I take it from your note that you liked the bolder aspect of our 09 Garys’. If that’s the case, I’d recommend you consider trying some Pinots from Siduri, AP Vin, Roar, and Lucia. All reasonably priced and basically in the same, general style of what we do. I might also add that you should consider looking at their Santa Lucia Highlands and Sta Rita Hills bottlings. Pinots tend to get bigger, bolder, and richer as you look south from Sonoma. There are exceptions, but that’s a fairly safe rule of thumb.

Enjoyed a 2014 Siduri [Santa Lucia Highlands] the last couple of nights with Norwegian salmon, and then later a ginormous caraway see crusted pork chop with red cabbage. These remain good PN for those who don’t ‘get’ the grape as much as others do. Medium bodied, very food friendly, and lots of fruit. It was better on the second night if anything.

[Kirk.Grant]

Maybe these are gateway Pinots for some that are in the more modern camp? I think of this maybe like I think of the 2006 Bergstroms that got me into Pinot in a big way…not wines I drink now. However, they were exciting enough back then to encourage me to book a trip out to Oregon where I met Jim Anderson and the wines from Patricia Green Cellars.

[Brian_Tuite]

Way to dig into the archives and revive a thread Arv. I read from the beginning and when I saw Bob Wood’s post I a chill ran up my spine.

[Scott_Butler]

Yeh, the search function seems to be getting some love, the thread called “Favorite California Pinot Appellation?” is also a revived 2011 discussion.

[Todd_Hamina]

@Brian Tuite

Way to dig into the archives and revive a thread Arv. I read from the beginning and when I saw Bob Wood’s post I a chill ran up my spine.

+1. Bob is unstoppable.

[Bruce_Rudman]

If you told me ten years ago that my cellar would be 40% Pinot (350+ bottles), I’d say you would have been nuts. It grows on you and it goes with just about everything (yes a Steak too). And Loring is not only a great wine, but Brian is a great guy. Their 15+ bottling run the gamut from fruit forward to elegant. Try a Keefer Ranch and those Anti-Flavor elite guys will change their tune.

[Arv_R]

@Brian Tuite

Way to dig into the archives and revive a thread Arv. I read from the beginning and when I saw Bob Wood’s post I a chill ran up my spine.

We all need to do our part to save the planet: recycle our styro shippers, reuse chatboard threads, etc.

[Bryan_Carr]

@Bruce Rudman

If you told me ten years ago that my cellar would be 40% Pinot (350+ bottles), I’d say you would have been nuts. It grows on you and it goes with just about everything (yes a Steak too). And Loring is not only a great wine, but Brian is a great guy. Their 15+ bottling run the gamut from fruit forward to elegant. Try a Keefer Ranch and those Anti-Flavor elite guys will change their tune.

Pinot just shot up into the #2 position in our cellar from a distant 5th after we got back from a trip to Sonoma last week. Syrah is still by far the king of the hill and our favorite wine to drink but Pinot is creeping up.

[T_Melloni]

@brigcampbell

I really enjoy the Capiaux Cellars spin on Garys’.

Nice to see Sean Capiaux getting a shout out. I like his wines - they do tend to be on the lighter side of the Cali-Pinot equation. Not sure if that is that he picks earlier or his wine-making techniques.