Last night I hosted the first tasting of our group's 2013-2014 cycle. The overall focus was looking at US Pinot and Syrah in a blind format with a single French ringer in each flight. Overall (with the exception of one very Euro-centric taster who seems to like fruit less and less each year - it's ok, I still like him) the US and French wines fit very well in the same context. Only one wine in each flight really stuck out, and it wasn't like the proverbial sore thumb.
Introductory wine
2011 Arnot-Roberts Chardonnay (Santa Cruz Mountains, CA)
Initially this was all about its acidity. It remained quite severe for a while, appealing only to the hard core Chablis/German Riesling fan in me. After it had gotten some air, and also warmed up a bit the wine became a bit easier to take, so I will consider that for future bottles.
Part One: Pinot Noir
2009 Anthill Farms Comptche Ridge Vineyard Pinot Noir (Mendocino, CA)
The most immediately fruity of the four Pinot Noirs, and so predictably the crowd favorite in this flight. It was by no means over-fruited, but certainly showed good cherry/berry combined with a nice background of earth/minerals.
2008 Rhys Alpine Vineyard Pinot Noir (Santa Cruz Mountains, CA)
Surprisingly this was the lowest rated red wine of the night, but it should be noted that one person really disliked it, and so skewed the ratings quite a bit. It was hard to coax much from the nose of the wine, but it had great density and depth. Much promise here, perhaps more than with any of the other Pinots. Definitely drunk way too soon, but I was interested to try it.
2010 Mount Eden Estate Vineyard Pinot Noir (Santa Cruz Mountains, CA)
My favorite of the Pinots, due to its seamless marriage of bright, yet understated fruit and a lovely mineral frame. Magnificent stuff that makes me regret never delving deeply into this wine in the past.
2006 Mugneret-Gibourg Vosne-Romanee (Vosne-Romanee, France)
This was not at all out of place in the flight. It had more in common with the Rhys than any of the other wines. It was more open than that wine, but the depth and seriousness of the two bottles was very, very similar. Continue to hold this wine if you have it, as there is still a lot of upside, not to mention tannin.
Part Two: Syrah
2010 Wind Gap Wines Syrah (Sonoma Coast, CA)
The most elegant of the four Syrah wines, with elegant fruit and good minerality. Not a lot of the meaty side of Syrah on display here, but it’s early days yet, so we’ll see what happens. Very enjoyable to drink if not the most complex. Best value of the night.
2011 Arnot-Roberts Clary Ranch Syrah (Sonoma Coast, CA)
More cracked black pepper than I could have ever imagined in a wine. There was also warm, green herbs. After some time had passed a lovely, smoky aroma was added to the mix, with a meatiness on the palate. This was the leanest of the four Syrahs, and also had the most acid, but I liked the balance.
2010 Lagier Meredith Syrah (Mount Veeder, Napa Valley, CA)
The bruiser of the night. Still good balance though. There was tons of blackberry fruit, as well as a dark, brooding meatiness. Excellent wine that is going to need some serious time to mellow out. I really liked this a lot!
2010 Domaine Courbis Cornas La Sabarotte (Northern Rhone, France)
Another excellent wine, and also not out of place in this grouping. Probably the most integrated of the Syrahs, with more depth of meat, minerals and smoke, and less obvious fruit. Actually neck and neck with the Arnot-Roberts for the most Syrah-ness of the flight.
A sweet to end the night
2010 Merkelbach Urziger Wurzgarten Riesling Beerenauslese (Mosel, Germany)
One of the most elegant BAs I have ever tasted. It had a bit of a shroud of botrytis that needs some additional time to integrate, but overall it was fruity, long and very well balanced.