thanks to Hollywood, Pinot Noir became the "it" grape; it was launched into the limelight while simultaneously extinguishing Merlot's longtime revered reputation. I wasn't buying it, figuratively and literally.Stubborn as I am, Pinot Noir has made its way into my glass more than a few times in the last couple years. And I hate to admit it, but I've grown to prefer it to Cabernet Sauvignon in many instances; Pinot Noir is more versatile with food and it can be more accessible in its youth. I'm not drinking much Cab from the 2008 or 2009 vintage and yet I've had some 2010 Pinot Noirs that are already drinking very well.
So I finally decided to drive over the hill to Sonoma. I didn't do much planning, so we just asked for recommendations as we went along. We started at Arista, stopped in at Porter Creek, then made our way to Red Car Wine Co. Being right next door, the Dutton-Goldfield tasting room seemed like the logical next stop; it turned out to be the highlight of our Sonoma experience.Hospitality Manager Sarah Kelley provided a wonderful tasting for us at the bar. We were the only guests there, so it was leisurely and casual. Side-by-side, we sampled four vineyard-specific Pinot Noirs while Sarah explained the differences in terroir and climate of the vineyard sites.
The Devil's Gulch Pinot was very fruit-forward with feathery-light tannins. The McDougall Vineyard Pinot was more floral with nice minerality; the Freestone Vineyard Pinot Noir exhibited baking spice and Asian spice notes and was the darkest in color and concentration. I couldn't decide which bottling I preferred--I enjoyed all of them--so I bought one of each, as well as a bottle of the Rued Vineyard Chardonnay (yum!).
Although I won't be changing the name of my blog to "Wine Tasting in Sonoma", it was definitely worth the drive. I am officially a Pinot lover!!
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