2018 DuPuis Pinot Noir Le Benedict - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley (11/20/2020)
So soon after arrival, probably too soon, but I really wanted to try one of these wines. Le Benedict is the “village” level wine from Wells Guthrie’s new venture. At this early date it shows a raspberry/strawberry fruit base, with an interesting herbal/pine/floral overtone. Texturally it’s quite smooth, with structure mostly from solid acids, and just a bit of back end tannin. In the end it’s a very enjoyable drink that hews more towards the lighter/delineated end of the scale, which is what I expected from Wells. I will wait a little while before broaching a single vineyard Pinot or the Syrah, but I certainly want to follow this new project as it moves forward.