WTN: Find the Costalina of Freedom

[David M. Bueker]

2013 Ceritas Pinot Noir Costalina - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (2/10/2016)
This is another winner for Sonoma Coast appellation Pinot Noir. The fruit is precise (red raspberry and strawberry), and the overall mouth feel is medium weight and at the same time weightless - very clean finish. It really does dance around the palate. I like the acid balance very much, as it's not sharp at all, just refreshing. This is very drinkable now. It doesn't even need another year or two to pull itself together.

[Robin Garr]

Ha! I saw your topic and thought the wine was Italian.

This raises a tangential question for me, though: From your note, this sounds like a Pinot that I'd like a lot, but as a AFWE whiner, I tend to shy away from California Pinot in general. Stupid of me, I know. Would you say that Sonoma Coast in general tends to make more "traditional" Pinot styles because it's cool, or is that a useless over-generalization?

[David M. Bueker]

Ah the conundrum of Sonoma Coast...

The appellation is so big that generalizations are tough. If we are talking "true Sonoma Coast" then the wines will be more to your liking. They are still California, but more restrained. This wine is a good example, in that it showed lovely, ripe red fruit, but never came close to being a "big" wine or overripe. It had a bit of a nod towards Burgundy (in the way that say 2009 Burgundies had a nod towards California) but was fully grounded in its home state.

I think you would enjoy this, though at $45 it's not exactly cheap. The Wind Gap Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir is in a similar vein, at a similar price point. Jamie Kutch does an SC appellation Pinot Noir for a little less ($39) that plays in the same style, if a bit gutsier, though still not a big wine.

[Jenise]

I think Robin would find a lot to like in California pinots these days. The category has really grown up and come our direction in terms of style evolution.