First Night: Meh. It was fine, but in no way noteworthy. Narrow band of flavors, no orange peel, short finish. Not a bad wine, but mid 80’s for points. I drank half and poured the rest into a screw top half bottle.
Second Night: Wow. Totally different experience. Beautiful, expressive nose and mouth. Lots of cherry and orange peel. Lovely silky palate and a long, long finish. Really wonderful. 93ish.
Surprised that a 2011 needed that much air, but thrilled to have another half case of RM pinots from this “off” vintage.
I often wonder how often a wine is consumed and judged before it has a chance to really open up. I agree with the many who have commented that this is why we should be somewhat skeptical of critics notes where they only have the opportunity for a quick taste at one point in time.
I also had this the other night, but I enjoyed it right from the start. I decanted it-- more for fun presentation at a small dinner party of non-wine people. Frankly, I pulled it not expecting a great wine, but it was close to spectacular. One of the best R-M Pinots I’ve had in awhile, for my tastes.
Maybe a short decant is all it needs. I only had it open on night one for 30 minutes or so, and the half bottle I poured it off into was completely full, so it couldn’t have gotten much air. I totally agree that, in the end, the wine greatly exceeded my expectations.