We opened this bottle to serve with chicken scallopines and rice. Medium red in color with a bit of tawny clearing at the rim. On initial pour (no decanting), the wine had an aroma Bob thought mildly bretty but I just found compost-heap vegetal. With time the nose improved considerably, with sweet tomato skin, cherry and celery dominating. No obvious oak. Over two hours, the palate never caught up and the wine stayed tarter and less giving than we'd have liked, but it was okay and especially so with our food. In a dumb stage, or fading? I have no idea. Paid $34 locally, and wouldn't buy again.
Later: bothered by my lack of opinion about dumb stage vs. tanking, I went hunting for other people's impressions and found one tasting note by our very own Otto dated 7/9/2007: 13,5% abv, 27,60€. Dark for a pinot. The nose is very sweet with only slight savoury tones. It has quite a bit of oak but also some true Pinot-like beetroot scents. The palate is sweet, not acidic enough yet not flabby either. Lacking in both minerality and earthy notes - it is all about the fruit and oak. Very well made and attractive in its style, but I do want something more at this price.
My what a difference a year made.