For me, Sea Smoke is a bit like mescal. You either like it, or you don’t. It is heavily manipulated wine and the flavors can be overwhelming. Very unimpressed.
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I will disagree because these wines are not ‘manipulated’ at all. They may be riper and not ‘Burgundian’ but they are kit ‘manipulated’ re: adds etc.
Cheers
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I have learned to never argue with someone with alot of experience. Perhaps charred was the correct term. They taste manipulated. I find the smoky quality to be a bit much, and a distraction.
I visited Storm Wines less than a year ago. Charming tasting room, and a nice lineup. But, there was not a single pinot I loved. Not one. I was quite shocked. Granted, they were all on the young side. But, even so I will typically like one or two. Needless to say, I did not acquire any.
As a winemaker that is relatively ‘new’ to producing Pinot noitr, I do find it quite ‘transparent’ with regards to how it shows its sense of place, vintage, clone and ‘winemaker intent’ - very similar to Grenache in these areas.
Cheers
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Can you explain why please?
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Very generally, I found them to be stingy. Not much expression, or precision. Some were good, but for me none were wow. I had an issue with the overall balance and mouthfeel. The acid did not feel correct, and I was underwhelmed with the entire lineup. Somewhat personal, obviously. It is all so subjective. However, the friend I was traveling with had the same reaction. And he has a good palate too.
Regards
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Thank you - and I get it. He definitely is of the belief that acid should be pronounced - and that can be overwhelming for those who are not of the same belief.
Cheers
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That is fascinating. I do not have the experience, nor do I likely have the palate you have. Though this has been a passion for 40 years now, and I prefer Pinot over any other varietal, I am still learning, and always willing to hear feedback from those who have more of an understanding of the various wines.
Like with so many other wines, my guess is these would be very good with the right amount of bottle age. However, I was not intrigued enough to buy any, as I am more focused on buying at auction with the proper aging, rather than holding onto the wine for years, waiting to consume them! With a few exceptions, of course.
Regards
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The answer to the original question is Whitcraft:
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He certainly is one that would fit the bill for many - as would Tyler, Domaine de la Cote, Chanin and, of course, ABC.
There are many others that are making wines that would be please some Burg lovers vintage to vintage so it’s not that easy - and we are still an ‘emerging’ region with newer vineyards still developing and winemakers still exploring.
Cheers
I have had all of those and agree. Although it has been many years since I have had an ABC. Like many people I remember having one of Jim’s famous lunches at the winery very early in my wine journey and it really made a huge impact on me.
Yep, Jim was certainly famous for lots of things, including those lunches. As far as his wines and winemaking goes, many who were by his side in the winemaking process are still there making those wines so ‘stylistically’, they are still in line.
Our area is one to keep your eyes on with regards to all styles of pinots - I imagine you’ll see others making more acid and earth driven pinots over the coming years instead of really fruit forward ones - but both styles will continue to find a home here in SBC with the diversity of microclimates we possess - and winemaking styles that folks explore.
Cheers
I picked up a few wines that Antonio rated very highly and they were much too ripe for me. Not going to mention names but you get the gist of what I am saying. I need to spend more time there.
Would be curious those would be - PM me please. Also, ‘ripeness’ is a moving target both with reviewers and consumers . . . but one’s taste tends not to be. And vintage to vintage, you can see more ripeness from some produders than other vintages - just as you would in Burgundy or Oregon.
Cheers
These are all great. I was really surprised but the Tyler. Not sure if their style changed, but enjoyed a bottle served to me recently. Chanin is great as is DDLC. Sandhi is also a favorite.
What surprised you about the Tyler? Was it riper or less ripe than you remember? The only ‘challenge’ with some of these is price creep - but then again, that’s pretty common everywhere these days 
Cheers!
I just remember it as being non de script a number of years ago when had it. It wasn’t horrible, but a bit ripe and one note. This one seemed to be more balanced.
Hi Tom
Have to intervene here as I’ve had a few of Justin’s wines starting before he got bonded.
I’m encouraging you to taste through his lineup. IMHO, they’re all well made and nicely balanced. They’re made to age, but easily approachable early on.
Obviously, I’m a fan
Cheers
Blake
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Tyler is still quite fruity, less complex and shorter length compared to DDLC as they harvest fruit in 2 weeks increments block by block, which might make certain batch too ripe (?) and only do 30-45% stem inclusion instead of 100% like DDLC. Maybe it’s vintage dependent since I only tasted 2021 and 2022, will have to revisit for 2023. Nonetheless still very nice wine, didn’t compel me to purchase. Beautiful estate and there was a cat greeting me!