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| Sideways Pinot Noir – The Heartbreak Grape! |
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| Thursday, 05 October 2006 | |
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Reported by Natale Lofaro Heartbreak grape indeed! As with the 2002 Burgundy tasting (held almost a year ago) the wines were nice, but you paid a lot for what you got. Our Sideways tasting encompassed the whole of California, and was not limited to the Santa Barbara region—Miles would have been proud. All the best Pinot regions in California share something in common—no not limestone, they are all very close to the massive Pacific fog bank that develops every summer from Mendocino to Point Concepcion (Santa Barbara). The cold maritime air colliding with the interior desert heat creates these conditions every year. The result: warm days (30ºC), cool nights (10ºC), and a very long growing season. In terms of acreage, Sonoma rules. There are approximately 24,000 acres of Pinot noir in California (4th most planted red in California): 10,000 acres are in Sonoma (40% of the California total—remembering that, as a whole, Sonoma only represents 6% of all California wine), Monterrey (Central Coast) follows with 3,800 acres, Santa Barbara 3,000 acres, Napa 2,700 acres, and Mendocino 1,900 acres (2004 statistics). Flight one showcased Pinots from Carneros, the Russian River, the Central Coast, and Santa Maria Valley. The crowd favourite was Macrostie from the Sonoma side of Carneros. The wine exhibited pretty ripe berry, cherry, light oak, and spice aromas with crisp acidity. Flight two continued in the same vain with Pinots from the Napa side of Carneros, the Sonoma Coast, Santa Rita Hills (both arguably the two most fashionable regions for Pinot in California), and the Russsian River Valley. Tops in the tasting was the Rodney Strong Pinot from the Russian River Valley. Score two for Sonoma! The wine exhibited pretty menthol, ripe berry, and vanilla characteristics. The final flight continued in the same theme with wines from Carneros, Santa Rita hills, Mt Harlan, and the Anderson Valley. The two favourites were both from the Anderson Valley. The favourite Pinot was Goldeneye (produced by Dan Duckhorn). It was the most intense Pinot of the night (coincidentally it was the highest rated at 93 points from the Wine Spectator) showing lots of toasty oak and ripe berry fruit, but balanced with crisp acidity. The other favourite was the 1998 Roederer Ermitage Brut Sparkling wine. Sorry Miles, in this tasting Santa Barbara wasn’t tops. The Cheeses“La Brique” Paysan Breton, France $4.99/200gLait Cru Camembert, Paysan Breton, France, $5.99/250g Port Salut, France, $$5.99/320g Five-Year-Old Cheddar, Balderson, Canada, $13.39/500g “Red Dragon” Welsh Cheddar with wholegrain mustard and ale, $8.89/400g Juraflore Comte – 12 months, France, $10.99/400g The WinesFlight 1Cambria, 2003, Santa Maria Valley 980482 $33.95 Sebastopol, 2001, Russian River Valley 592931 $29.95 Macrostie, 2002, Carneros, Sonoma 674911 $29.95 Landmark, 2003, Sonoma County 737890 $39.95 Flight 2 Sanford, 2001, Santa Rita Hills 709618 $38.95 Belle Glos, 2002, Sonoma Coast 652883 $48.95 Rodney Strong, 2001, Russian River Valley 677690 $44.95 Cuvaison, 2003, Carneros, Napa 714519 $33.95 Flight 3 Etude, 2002, Carneros 655555 $69.95 Sanford, 2001, Santa Rita Hills, Rinconada 724104 $75.00 Calera, 2000, Mt. Harlan, Reed Vineyard 716373 $65.00 Goldeneye, 2003, Anderson Valley 659854 $77.95 Roederer, 1998, Anderson Valley 479741 $62.95 |
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 The National Capital Sommelier Guild strongly supports moderate and responsible consumption of wine and spirits. Guild dinner events allow a designated driver to attend at a reduced price. The designated driver will not be served alcohol. Guild tasting events provide and encourage the use of spit buckets. |
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