The Most Enjoyable Wine on the Planet?

In the past couple years, few categories have captured my attention more than domestic Pinot Noir. And within that category, few wines have defined the essence of what I'm looking for more than the Belle Glos Las Alturas Pinot Noir. The 2008 was the first vintage that caught my attention. Tonight I had a chance to try the 2009 vintage of the same wine. A lot of friends and I have purchased this wine and are wondering... will it live up to its predecessor -or- prove to be a disappointment? Read on...

The Belle Glos label comes to us from the Wagner family - producers of Caymus - one of the most reliably outstanding Cabernet producers in Napa Valley. Their Pinot Noir label is Belle Glos. When I tasted their 2008s I was blown away. The Belle Glos Meiomi is a screw-capped $25 bottling produced from grapes grown in Santa Barbara, Sonoma, and Monterey. But they also offer a trio of single vineyard Pinot Noirs with a release price of $44:

  • Santa Maria Valley - Clark & Telephone Vineyard
  • Santa Lucia Highlands - Las Alturas Vineyard
  • Sonoma Coast - Taylor Lane Vineyard
The good news about these single vineyard wines is they've been available at retail for around $34.99 without much effort. Heck - even the notoriously unfavorably priced Wine.com has them available at this price point. Deep discounters have offered these wines for right around $25 (as a limited time offer) which has established a new benchmark for value hunters. Every Pinot Noir offer that comes along is compared to this wine at $25 dollars.

Perhaps what makes this wine so desirable to me is its versatility. It's perfect for so many occasions. It's full-bodied enough it provides a viable gateway for Cabernet lovers to transition to Pinot Noir. It's light enough it plays to a broad audience. And it comes in nice looking package so it works well for gifting. At under $30 it's a wine I can't imagine buying too much of.

Wine Spectator rated all of the 2009 single vineyard wines between 92 and 93 points. Here are my notes on the 2009...

2009 Belle Glos Las Alturas Pinot Noir
$44 Release Price
14.7% Alcohol

Hard to think of a more delicious wine than this. It brings the same rich, plush satisfaction of the 2008 but (at this point) balances it out a bit with a layer of brighter flavors on initial attack. Behind this are the same slightly-sweet spice notes, cherry pipe tobacco, and enjoyable fruit flavors found in the prior vintage. Dangerously difficult to stop drinking. Highly recommended - back up the truck.

95/100 WWP: Classic

Further Reading:

Question of the Day: Have you tried the 2009 Belle Glos single vineyard Pinot Noirs? What did you think? Either way - any tips for wines you'd consider utterly enjoyable?


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Honest Cooking: A Digital Food & Wine Magazine

On Monday of this week a new online food and wine magazine, Honest Cooking, launched. An audacious experiment in group blogging led by Kalle Bergman, the site features the writing of over 50 food and wine writers from around the globe. And I am pleased to be a small part of the staff, writing a few posts each week [...]

Honest Cooking: A Digital Food & Wine Magazine originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Winecast/~3/89ZRARMmnnE/

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A Wine for Tonight: 2010 Chateau Ste. Michelle Dry Riesling

Would you like a quick suggestion for a good wine to drink tonight (or this weekend) that won?t break your budget and is widely available? Many of our readers have said this is something they would like, so here is this week?s selection, the 2010 Chateau Ste. Michelle Dry Riesling from the Columbia Valley in [...]

A Wine for Tonight: 2010 Chateau Ste. Michelle Dry Riesling was originally posted on Wine Peeps. Wine Peeps - Your link to great QPR wines from Washington State and beyond.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WinePeeps/~3/a3ZtCVIBU4U/

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Tasting Alert: Albino Rocca at Vintages Belmont, MA


Coming this Friday, June 10th to Vintages in Belmont, MA is a free tasting of wines from Albino Rocca. Angela Rocca himself along with his daughter Daniela will be on hand pouring and describing their wines. It's an event not to be missed. Click here for more information about the tasting.

I first discovered the wines of Albino Rocca at a blind tasting at Adam Japko's last fall arranged by Vintages owner Eric Broege. We tasted through the following 6 Barbareschi - the ones in bold stood out to me as particularly noteworthy:

  • 2004 MARCARINI Barolo "Brunate" (La Morra)
  • 2004 ALBINO ROCCA Barbaresco "Brich Ronchi" (Barbaresco)
  • 2005 ALESSANDRIA Barolo "Monvigliero" (Verduno)
  • 2005 CANTINA del PINO Barbaresco "Albesani" (Neive)
  • 2006 SOTTIMANO Barbaresco "Pajore" (Treiso)
  • 2006 Burlotto Barolo "Cannubi" (Barolo)
I'd rate the 2004 Albino Rocca Brich Ronchi 94 points - outstanding. Last Friday in anticipation of this tasting I cracked open a 2003 Brich Ronchi:

2003 Albino Rocca Brich Ronchi Barbaresco
$68 Release Price
1,500 cases produced
Purchased at Bin Ends Wine

A massive wine of surprising depth for the region. As soon as I opened it, the room was filled with aromas of rustic fruit. On the nose I get signature Nebbiolo minerality, deep rich red fruit and menthol. The mouth feel is rich and supple. The finish goes on for minutes. An outstanding wine from a fantastic Barbaresco producer.

85 Wine Spectator
94/100 WWP: Outstanding

The wines of Albino Rocca have consistently impressed me so I'm looking very forward to attending this tasting. Too often as I'm exploring a new wine category I make the mistake of "nibbling at the low end". What better way to see if you like the wines from a certain region than starting at the high end - for free! I hope to see you at the tasting Friday.

Subscribe to the Wellesley Wine Press and I'll let you know how it goes.

Question of the Day: Have you had Albino Rocca Barbaresco? What are some of your favorite producers in Barbaresco?


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/1wltpSbLPRA/tasting-alert-albino-rocca-at-vintages.html

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July 29, 2011 Florida Jim Cowan?s 2011 Tasting Notes Archive-Part Two

The 2011 archive part 2 is presented by date the notes were compiled and submitted. Part 1 may be found here. Prior year’s tasting notes may be found here. July 29, 2011 2009 François Chidaine, Touraine (rouge): 13% alcohol, a blend of Pinus d?Aunis, Côt and Cabernet Franc; opaque, dark ruby; reticent nose controlled mostly [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gangofpour/uncZ/~3/0axCLMWIxfU/jim-cowans-2011-tasting-notes-part-tw

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