Another in a series of blind Pinot explorations with BBer: Scott Christie. Loren Sonkin’s recent 2004 Oregon Pinot Retrospective prompted me to pull 3 from the cellar and put them to the test.
NV Fabrice Gasnier La Cravatine - Chinon
Crisp, dry, light, agile and pink. A simple pleasing sparkler with faint traces of red fruit and hints of citrus. 100% Cab Franc.
2004 Le Cadeaux Cote Est Pinot Noir, Oregon
This Pinot is a mess. Oaky with mild minty edges. There’s more wood on the palate disguising the red fruit. Ripe with prickly heat. Not a good showing. Other vintages of this bottling have been far more pleasing.
2005 Louis Jadot Savigny Les Beaune La Dominode
The nose is relatively shy with a fleeting whiff of VA, eventually revealing restrained red fruit. The palate features pomegranate and cranberry. The wine is integrated with a soft yet raw edge combined with excellent acidity. The midpalate and finish are all about structure as the whole show is clearly in the midst of shutting down. The absence of earth, minerals, or sous bois had me initially thinking Cali, but the structure and fruit brought me back to Beaune with a blind guess of Pommard.
2004 Westrey Abbey Ridge Pinot Noir, Oregon
A recent TN about premature aging was correct, cloudy and showing some very faint browning. The nose reveals dried cherries with underlying earthy red briar fruit and dried strawberry. Bright acidity and well balanced with good midpalate intensity leading to a pleasing finish This Pinot is still quite tasty but there’s a surprising lack of freshness. Time to drink up.
2005 Inman Olivet Grange Pinot Noir, California
Oh dear. Oh dear o’ dear. This was perhaps my 4th time with this Pinot over the past few years and I have no idea how a Pinot can get so much more oaky …but it has. What was once a nuisance has become a featured player. There’s fruit behind the wood shop but you’ll need to do some searching. I still thoroughly enjoyed the lighter texture. My blind guessing: “I really hope this isn’t Inman, and if it is…I really hope it’s not OG, and if it is…perhaps it’s the 06”. I plan not to touch my stash for several years…and think positively.
2006 Alesia Falstaff Pinot Noir, California
Quite a contrast to the Inman. Beautiful pure red Pinot fruit with only the slightest impression of vanilla creating a creamy red cherry attack. Some very subtle citrus emerges with time. Supportive acidity and a very pleasing finish. Elegant and satisfying. My best experience to date with an Alesia.
2004 Cristom Eileen Vyd Pinot Noir, Oregon
Stemmy woodiness in spades. There’s ripe high toned red fruit but the whole cluster character takes center stage. Good acidity with a somewhat coarse mouthfeel and rubbing tannins. The ripeness is just barely held in check revealing a faint glow of underlying heat. I have no idea where this is going and it’s certainly not as fun/vibrant as it was on release. Planning to let the last one sleep.
2003 Artadi Santa Cruz Artazu, Navarra (100% Grenache)
Open for 3 nights, this was an oaky relatively sweet disappointment on night one, a somewhat oaky underperformer on night two, and an integrated more interesting medium weight and balanced Red on night three. Darker berries morphed to minerally red fruit over 72 hours. Controlled ripeness and no sign of Jammy sweet red Grenache character. Good acidity throughout (at least that was consistent). Yet another bottle that proves that wine is just plain fascinating…I haven’t a clue how this pulled off such a makeover in the darkness of the fridge. Planning to revisit it again tonight.
The WOTN was a bit of a toss up with the Alesia taking center stage and the Westrey close by. Had the SLB not been shutting down, it likely would’ve garnered top honors. Three more data points suggesting that 04 was a challenging vintage for Oregon Pinot.
RT