2017 Halleck Pinot Noir Hillside Cuvée Sonoma Coast
Perfect youthful California pinot exuberance tempered by modest bottle age. Excellent and best pinot on the table. Don't think this is a long-term aging candidate but it should cruise for years in a cool cellar.
2021 Adelsheim Pinot Noir Willamette Valley
Soft, elegant, nicely nuanced.
2022 Ken Wright Pinot Noir Willamette Valley
Sweet raspberry fruit, initially muted, some cherry and earth. And unlike the '22 Cloudline nearby, this got better and better in the glass. Still too young, but well-made and it has a future.
2022 Cloudline Pinot Noir Willamette Valley
Wow, the notes on CT are brutal--and deserved. Light candied red licorice notes where fruit should be, and the acidity's too high. I remember about ten, maybe 15 years ago when Cloudline first showed up with big points from the Spectator, and a friend went to some lengths to secure a bottle. I don't remember much about that except not thinking it worth the hunt, and I don't think I've seen the label since. Anyway, I kept going back to this on Friday night, and it never got better.
2018 Smith & Sheth Pinot Noir Cru New Zealand
Warm garnet color looks a little older than it is. On the palate, dry and savory fruit with strong minerality. Not sure where its going from here, but I like it. Needs food to show its best.
2015 Wind Gap Wines Pinot Noir Gap's Crown Vineyard Sonoma Coast
Impressed with the '13 way back when, I jumped on a deal for the '15s and I've hated every one of them. Time in bottle has helped somewhat, but the Jolly Rancher watermelon candy note still drags it down. My last bottle--good riddance!
2021 Erath Pinot Noir Rosé Oregon
Pale yellowish pink, weak fruit, boring. If it ever had a good day, that day's past.
2022 Lunaria Orsogna Pinot Grigio Ramoro Terre di Chieti IGT
Light coral pink, exuberantly aromatic, decent palate fruit with racy acidity.
A rose (orange wine?) for geeks, not mothers-in-law.
I loved it.