2006 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Russian River Valley

I said we would wait a year to re-visit this wine, and it just so happens that tonight we decided to pop this a year and just a few days later at Under the Moon in Bordentown, NJ. . Popped and poured, and showing a great ruby color in the glass, the nose on this wine showed the typical Kosta Browne fruit profile, with that creamy Kosta Browne sweetness that we have grown to love. . On the nose, there was some nice dark cherry, hints of cola, raspberry, and some cinnamon and spice. I could still sense a bit of alcohol on the nose, even more so than the last bottle we had. The nose was rounded out by some lavender and faint hints of cardamom. . On the palate, as much as I hate to say it, this bottle just didn't perform like it did when we had it last year. It had some nice creaminess and acidity to it, with a bit of earthy elegance, some herb, cherry cola, and other berry fruits. It was the finish however that didn't seem nearly as smooth as it has been the many other times we have had this wine. There was still definitely some heat on the finish, which I attribute to the alcohol, and it just seemed to be a high octane, over extracted, over ripe wine to me. . Many will say that I might just be growing out of this style of wine, but I know that is not the case. I will be the first to admit that I cannot drink this style of win on a regular basis, but I really was craving this style tonight. In short, I think that once again we'll let the remaining bottles lie on their sides in the cellar and sleep for another year before re-visiting, however, it may have just been the fact that this wine needed an aggressive decant before serving, which I did not do. . The wine definitely mellowed out with time, and the last glass was definitely the best, so who knows for sure. For now, 88 points is the score that is awarded to this wine. Cheers!