Peay’s second label “Cep” would be a good choice.
You should also consider:
Belle Pente Willamette Valley
Evesham Wood Willamette Valley
Vincent, Twill, Cameron, and the Colene Clemens suggestion are also all very good wines under $30.
Failla Willamette Valley - Oregon
I think it’s important for the Thanksgiving pinot to have good acid, given the fattiness and richness of the food. And ones with that kind of autumnal crisp cranberry character seem to match the event and season particularly well.
But I wouldn’t be concerned about fruit overwhelming the food - typical Thanksgiving fare is quite rich and robust.
My first thought was “Domaine Eden” bottling from Mount Eden, a very high quality Santa Cruz Mountains pinot at a great price. But I looked and it’s into the low to mid $30s, so just misses your price point.
Acker has three 6 bottle lots of Cabot pinot noir Anderson Valley, 2012 and 2013, currently $90 per lot, estimated $100-140. That would be a great buy and a great fit for the Thanksgiving table.
Some that I like in that price range include:
Cameron Dundee Hills or Ribbon Ridge
Evesham Wood la Grive Bleue
Haden Fig Puits Sec
Arterberry Maresh Dundee Hills
I’ll echo Marcus and wholeheartedly recommend the 2016 Belle Pente Willamette Valley PN. I see it for around $27, before any case discounts. Should appeal to the geeky as well as the non-wine-crazy folks.
I opened a '16 or '17 (not sure which-not paying much attention) Sandler Bien Nacido PN last Friday for my son’s girlfriend and my son. They wanted an easy to like engaging red and it fit the bill-for them. I found it to have a bit too much jolly rancher/cotton candy for my taste but I find that character and find it objectionable in 98% of Calif. pinot. Some leftovers on day 2 had firmed up a bit.
I only ever tried one A-M bottling, the 2016 A-M “Old Vines”.
It was the gentlest, lightest-bodied American PN I’ve ever crossed paths with - it didn’t amount to much more than a simple rose of Pinot Noir - almost like an American Rene Engel [without quite as much acidity].
I have had similar impressions. I have tried five or six and every one skirted to the edge of “not having enough there there” and sometimes flat-out passed that edge.
I tasted at Kelley Fox last month and her Maresh bottlings are awfully delicate too. I own a bit and hope they firm up with time. If not, they will be fine with very light food but not quite my cup of [wait for it] tea.
You should seriously consider Marcus’s base bottling “Goodfellow Willamette Valley”…once called Matello Lazarus in older vintages? I’ve had very good luck with it over the years. Not sure how well it will work for the “Meiomi” crowd but I’ve been shocked how well non-Pinotphiles have taken to it at parties. The acidity works with food. Perhaps a touch light for Turkey…which typically needs something richer than a well made sub-$30 US pinot…IMHO.
RT
The 2013 Goodfellow WV pinot I had this last weekend was one of the most savory and interesting pinots I’ve had in a while, at a ridiculous price point (~$20). Younger vintages may not show as well right out the gate but it’s worth mentioning in this context.
Another one in your price range: Halcon
Thanks for this, just ordered some, like Sandler a lot!
Personally, I’d bring a selection of Pinots plus other wines. You can meet his specs, plus have options when you see what the guests are into and what specific preparations call for.
The Sandler 6-pack gives you 3 PNs, a Grenache, Chard and Cab. There’s your Grenache, and there’ll likely be people who prefer white and people who’d prefer Cab. It’s a softer Cab that won’t clash. (I help bottle these.)
Halcon PNs are excellent, but might be hard to find this time of year. K&L carries them, but are sold out. (I helped bottle until they moved.)
Browsing K&L I see:
'15 J Wilkes Santa Maria Valley for $20. He’s a Berserker and I like what I’ve tried of his.
'17 Siduri Santa Barbara County for $20 Another Berserker, also excellent wines.
'10 August West SLH for $28 Nice maturity. 4 bottles left.
'13 Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard Branciforte Creek for $29 (Insider’s Advantage price)
'17 Siduri RRV
'05 Andrew Rich Willamette Valley $30 Good producer, nice maturity.
'16 Siduri Willamette Valley $30 I like what he does with WV fruit.
'16 Siduri SLH $30
'05 David Bruce Sonoma Coast $30 Might be worth a shot.
'10 August West RRV $30
2014 Sea Slopes Fort Ross Winery Pinot Noir - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (6/29/2019)
Day 1: Burgundy like with earth, funk, chalk, raspberries and rose petals. This is my go to Pinot Noir under $20. Hard to believe this is still available at WineStreet Spirits. I am going to buy a case more!!! Thanks Brad.
Day 3: Holding form with cranberry, earth, soy, spice and raspberries. Medium plus finish. Outstanding wine. 91 points (91 points)
Available here for $29.99.
https://www.wine-searcher.com/find/sea+slopes+fort+ross+winery+pinot+noir/2014
So many good suggestions already (I favorited this list)!
I would add Chanin’s SB County Pinot Noir and second the Arterberry Maresh PN.
2016 Hitching Post Santa Maria $30
2016 Hitching Post Cork Dancer $30
Both are extremely solid for the price. If you join the club I think you get 20% off
Just over budget, but with shopping you could find:
Domaine Eden Pinot Noir
And there are at least a dozen other Pinot Noirs from the Santa Cruz Mountains available under $30. Alfaro, Bargetto and Cinnabar are as easy as ABC, although my choice after Domaine Eden would be Soquel. Mount Eden and Rhys of course are very great wines, but not in the budget.
Dan Kravitz
For me, those would be precisely the selling points of the wine - soft, delicate, light on its feet, sippable, contemplatible, food friendly.
A few years ago, we tried one of the monster Cal Pinots for a big holiday - I seem to recall it was a Belle Glos Clark & Telegraph - and that “wine” was simply unswallowable.
All of us spit it back out into our glasses and the remnant of the bottle was poured down the sink.
I agree with Chris and others that acidity is essential here.
Lots of great recs in the thread. Let me add Briceland (I think they’ve got something in that price zone, but they’re not big enough to have a regular web store, so I can’t verify), and second Twill and Kelley Fox in particular for this usage. But you can’t go wrong with Vincent, Sandler, Goodfellow, Cowan, Cabot, Evesham Wood, etc. etc.
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Major Wines 2017 Santa Barbara Pinot noir. Andrew is still a bit of an under the radar producer right now, but he’s absolutely killing it and his wines are REALLY effing delicious.
For me, those would be precisely the selling points of the wine - soft, delicate, light on its feet, sippable, contemplatible, food friendly.
A few years ago, we tried one of the monster Cal Pinots for a big holiday - I seem to recall it was a Belle Glos Clark & Telegraph - and that “wine” was simply unswallowable.
All of us spit it back out into our glasses and the remnant of the bottle was poured down the sink.
Uhhh, A-M and Belle Glos are the yin-yang of the universe. Before just speculating that you want something lithe and limber, try tasting an A-M and report back.
Wine is more complex than “selling points”. What may seem perfect on paper may not work out that way in real life.
I am generally an AFWE.
A wine needs a certain amount of ooomph, flavor profile, what the Brits call “grip” to engage the brain.
I have confidence in Kelley Fox’s ability to coax these things out of Maresh fruit but I have given up on the quixotic, somewhat shy and reclusive James Arterberry Maresh. It seems his wines reflect his personality.