2003 Brewer-Clifton Pinot Noir Rio Vista- USA, California, Central Coast, Santa Rita Hills - Sta. Rita Hills (9/26/2009)
Hmmm…not sure what to think of this wine. It is all chocolate with a distinct underbrush/green note from the what I am assuming is a pretty heavy stem inclusion. That being said, all I taste is chocolate and underbrush with a little bit of sweet blackberry pie. Almost at first reminded me of a Cabernet on 100% Darnajou oak barrels…not my favorite Pinot.
Tony, I had this wine about a year ago. Initially I was also disappointed when I poured a sip as I found the edges browning and the wine flabby. I then poured it in a flat bottom decanter for about an hr and the wine completely transformed. Edges became bright purple and some great fruit aromatics emerged. I’m not saying this to defend these guys as I’ve had my fair share of horrible PNs from them, but sometimes they really rock my boat. Another recent and pleasant surprise was the '04 B-C, Clos Pepe.
The 04 Clos Pepe is a great bottle, it, as most B/C’s need a LOT of air time to show it’s stuff.We popped an 07 Santa Rita Hills Chard recently that we didnt care for at all even with plenty of air time.
This might have been one of the first wines made from this still-young vineyard that sits on the Southeastern side of the Sta Rita Hills . . . It gets very warm there, probably warmer than anyplace else in the Sta Rita Hills, and the wines produced there tend to be more ‘delicate’ than others from the area . . .
Therefore, my guess is that the stem inclusion will continue to stand out much more with these wines than others made by BC in any given vintage . . .
Larry,
Hmm, not sure I quite agree. In principle, yes, but of all the '03 PNs from B-C this is the one where the stems seemed less dominant from the beginning. Their Melville has often been the most dominant imho. (Just finished an '02 Carries to compare with the '02 B-C Melville.)