Anyone have any insight on the 2019 vintage? Seems to have been a cooler vintage. What is your favourite between La Cote vs Bloom’s field?
Looking forward to trying this.
Any insight would be appreciated!
Getting this wine instead of Aubert……
Happy I am not the only one excited about this release…will pick up a 3 or 6 pack, excited about the new estate wine as well even if at a lower price.
DDLC?
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Don’t Dare Look Clueless?
Domaine de la Cote
Raj Parr & Sashi Moorman Pinot Noir Label from Sta. Rita Hills, CA
Years back, I liked DDLC’s 2012 and 2014 village-level Ste. Rita Hills pinot bottling and on that basis bought a bunch of single-vineyard 2015’s and 2016’s. The 2015’s were over the top with a red jolly rancher flavor that made it hard to finish even a glass. One bottle had a muddy taste to it that was hard to enjoy. Based on trying the 2016 Memorious, the 2016’s seem much better in this regard, but still at the edge of ripeness that I prefer. I’m letting my '16s age out a bit before revisiting.
That said, given the fine line between liking and disliking these wines for me, I dropped off the list instead of risking hundreds of dollars each vintage. Wondering if anyone has found these wines to be overly ripe or candied in '17 or '18? A bit perplexing really because I have liked Parr’s Sandhi and Oregon bottlings, particularly the whites. William Kelley even gave the '15 La Cote a 96 point score, but that just doesn’t line up with the particular bottle I had.
I am also interested in these questions. And the price. Seems a little pricey?
No pricier than say Rhys or some of the Littorai single vineyard wines.
Have not tried the wines, but seems like a solid bet. Picked up a variety 3-Pak to give them a try.
I love the DDLC wines though in general, they show better with a lot of air or cellar time as the whole-cluster can make these disjointed in their early stages and I don’t think the 2018s are drinking as well today as they will. I have had some older vintages (which were amazing) and started drinking them consistently with the 2016 vintage so I cannot make any judgements relative to the candied or fruit-forward nature of the 2015. However, since 2016, I have found these wines to have tremendous balance, length, and some serious depth. The DDLC Estate 2019 is billed by the winery as having less whole cluster and being more approachable than the single vineyard cuvees and I am looking forward to trying it. However, I would say that the DDLC Estate 2018 needs more time and though I cannot find any release notes stating such, it tastes stemmy to me (in a good way) so not sure if there was a change with 2019. Either way, I have had two of the 2018 DDLC Estates and the second bottle about 6 months later was better than the 1st and both got better with a lot of air with the last glass being the best. As for the single vineyard wines, they all have above average acidity and tannins (for U.S. pinot) though I would say that Memorious may be slightly more approachable early (and just a tad rounder) while La Cote has the strongest backbone and is made to age. Bloom’s Field has the most aromatic bouquet and is a favorite in group tastings, though I still think La Cote has the higher ceiling with time. I have the Sous La Chene, but am sitting on them for some more time and hope to reap the rewards. Great wines in my opinion.
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Huge fan of these. Picked up a case and am planning to hold for a few years before I open them up.
2018 DDLC was 100% WC & a mix of Memorious/BF/LC
https://domainedelacote.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/2018-Domaine-de-la-Cote-Tasting-Notes.pdf
2019 DDLC is some WC and from BF/Eames (Which I never heard of before, even when I did a vineyard tour this name was not mentioned.)
I’ve only had 2017/2018 & 2020(Barrel Samples) and think they’re all spectacular. Not Jammy, but more savory/saltyness?
I think the 2018 DDLC @ $50 is prob the best Bang for the Buck Pinot I’ve had in a while.
For those who are curious, Sandhi has a Sta Rita Hills Pinot for ~$35 that has 83% fruit from DDLC. That is 30% WC.
I plan on doing a 2019 Sandhi Sta Rita vs 2019 DDLC next year and see if there’s a difference 
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Also – I recently tried the 2014 DDLC Juliet Chardonnay. It was simply outstanding and as I mentioned in another thread, it along with the 2014 Etienne Sauzet Puligny Montrachet Les Combettes are the best Chardonnays I have had in a while.
Thanks for the updated release notes Vince (I guess the old googler was not working for me when I tried to find them) and the release notes I had did not include the Estate bottling.
We Pobega’d a 2019 Bloom’s Field and 2019 DDLC the past couple of nights.
I LOVE this winery.
The Bloom’s Field was just wonderful. Great acidity, not overly forward fruit, minerality, red fruit, great mouth feel and finish, and that ineffable thing about good pinot that I like so much. It just killed and got better and better through the night. I couldn’t ask for more. Had it with a baked squash main course. (Perfect match with the squash.)
The DDLC was more austere and brooding…it it s BID wine and seems like it will live a long time. The Bloom’s was more fun now, but the DDLC says, “Catch me down the road.”
I’d say it’s fine to drink the Bloom’s now, but wait a decade for the DDLC.
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by DDLC you mean the Estate $50 or the La Cote Bottle?
The label says “DDLC” where you would normally see La Cote, or Bloom’s Field.
Stolen pic…
Last night, we finished our trio of tasting with the 2019 La Cote.
More deliciousness. This one had sous bois and minerals and subtle complex red fruit. Loooong finish, great structure.
All three of these wines bring individual differences and wonderful characteristics .
Very happy we did the early kill, great as a reference point for down the road and they all really sparked my joy in wine.
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Thanks Anton. I have been eyeing my 2019s for a few weeks. Maybe over the Christmas break.
Thx for the update & your thoughts. CT has been pretty brutal on the 2019 Vintage from DDLC in general and glad to see it’s not all bad.