So yesterday for dinner I prepared tea-smoked salmon splashed with a miso-mandarin sauce and steamed brussels sprouts. Watching the grim news out of Philadelphia on the TV during prep, we decided a glass of pinot noir would improve our mood. So I opened:
2020 Villa Maria Pinot Noir Taylors Pass Vineyard Marlborough
Dark and almost opaque color. Ripe, medicinal nose of iodine and black cherry with slick, extracted dense fruit on the palate and notes of fennel, black coffee and varnish on the finish. Supposedly one of Villa Maria's top bottlings, and I fondly remember visiting the winery 20 years ago, but I can't stand this bottle. Thank you; next!
So back to the cellar I went and chose an older California pinot, then while there did something else before grabbing what I thought was the selected bottle. Only when I poured the wine did I realize I'd grabbed something else entirely (not sure why it was standing where it was, but oh well). It was this:
2019 Nichol Vineyard Cabernet Franc Okanagan Valley
Winery purchase. IOW, this was purchased after tasting/liking it at the winery almost 18 months ago, but this bears no resemblance to anything I would have ever liked. Pretty nose seems promising but then comes the very sour fruit on the palate. Undrinkable; and I'm done with this winery. The wines taste so good there but none of the reds purchased on that last trip have been satisfactory once I got them home. Thank you; next!
Back to the cellar for the wine I'd intended to open:
2002 MacPhail Pinot Noir Toulouse Vineyard Anderson Valley
Other good Macphail pinots from the mid 2000's set my expectations for a better showing than I got from this bottle. Time's up on this one: dark maroon/brownish color, roasted fruit, muddy finish. We dumped it. Thank you; next!
Actually, no next. At this point, dinner was ready and tired of duds, we decided to forego wine after all.