2003 Fiddlehead Cellars Pinot Noir Seven Twenty Eight Fiddlestix

There is something about Santa Rita Hills pinot noir that we are so fond of, and Fiddlehead brings out an even bigger fondness. Kathy and her team are creating outstanding wines year in, year out, and this was a classic Fiddlehead example of a great, mature wine! WOW!

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Popped and poured tonight at Manon in Lambertville, this showed well from the first swirl and sniff. This wine was full throttle from the get go, with amazing fruit! Great Santa Rita Hills dark ruby color in the glass, still showing a little thinning near the rim of the Riedel.

Gorgeous of red fruits on the nose, black cherry, raspberry, plum, and tons of berry! Subtle hints of cola round out the nose with some nice spice and a hint of vanilla/butterscotch.

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On the palate, the fruit is definitely there, and has some great age to it. I really have a hard time seeing the fruit showing any better on this wine, but I won’t be surprised if it does. More black cherry on the palate, with a bit of cola and raspberry. This is an absolute joy in the mouth. The alcohol has integrated nicely, and the acidity is absolutely perfect. There is just enough there to make you appreciate it, and is not overpowering in the least. This wine is absolutely magnificent, and it is BIG! The finish lingers on for a good 30 seconds, and couldn’t be any more pleasant!

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Only downside I can report about this wine is the fact that we are down to our last one now. Have a couple of the ’02, and might have to give one of them a try tonight for comparison sake. Another incredible effort by Kathy and her Fiddlehead crew. We’re huge fans! 93 points! Cheers!

2006 A.P. Vin Pinot Noir Clos Pepe Vineyard

Unfortuantely, I think that this was a case of infantcide, and this bottle would benefit from another couple of years in the cellar. Lacking on the nose, with some hints of dark fruits, but nothing really stood out. On the palate, the slightest hints of sour cherry, and a sour finish that was short. This wine would definitely benefit from a couple of splash decants, and I would recommend splash decanting for at least 3 hours. Definitely hold for a few years. 85 points. Cheers

1992 Kistler Pinot Noir McCrea Vineyard

Who would have thought that this bottle had any fruit left in it whatsoever? I surely did not, but what a pleasant surprise. This was popped and poured tonight at Oliver - A Bistro in Bordentown. Upon opening, I cannot tell you how worried I was that this bottle was not going to be pleasant in the least. The cork came out in about 30 pieces, but regardless of how many pieces it was in, and how long it took to get it out, the cork did it's job, and the wine was still a pleasure to drink. Upon first pour, it looked as though there was a little bricking in the glass. I've never seen this in a pinot, but it is more common in older Bordeaux. Upon first smell, the nose was pretty muted, and I expected the worst. I thought for sure there would be some vinegar on the nose, with no fruit, but I was wrong. The nose had some floral notes, and was predominantly cherry. Tiny hints of blackberry and raspberry were there, but you really had to concentrate hard to pull them out of the mix.

The palate was a little muted at first, but by the time we finished the first half pour, this wine was in its perfect drinking window...at least for this particular wine a this particular moment. Ideally, I would guess that the perfect drinking window for this would have been sometime between 1999 and 2003. There was however a lot of cherry on the palate, and this wine really reminded me us of a cross between the 2004 Sanford, and the Benton Lane pinot noir. Seeing as this is a Kistler, that is not necessarily a good thing, but we were really expecting the worst.

Regardless, this was a very enjoyable wine, and the most aged pinot noir we have had to date. It had a smooth finish, with no tannin whatsoever, and a very pleasant after taste making it worthy of 92 points. This wine just proves that Kistler is produced for the long haul. Cheers!