Recommendation: An “OK” buy at $40.
Winery/Producer: Clark & Telephone Vineyard; California.
Grape Variety: Pinor Noir.
Geographic Region, Appellation: Santa Maria Valley; Santa Barbara County, California
Vintage: 2008
Price: $39.99
Purchased From: Total Wine; Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Paired With:Pork tenderloin ibn apricot sauce, sweet potato/apple casserole.
Tasting:
He said: Opaque, blueish purple color. Strong cherry, raspberry and blackberry aromas. Intense dark fruit taste that carries through a medium-long spicy fruit finish with hints of smoke and leather at the very end. LOTS of fruit flavor, smooth tannins, easy drinking and excellent with the pork (as long as you didn’t get any of the peppery rub on the outside). I love Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir and at $40 this is a pretty good one.
She said: This is the second time we have had this wine with this dinner. The first time we were under impressed, but this time it was a WOW! Difference? the first tasting was preceded by multiple wines and food. Apparently, that was not a good idea. I have accepted the fact that you have to carefully pair food and wine but I did not fully appreciate how the food and wine fit into the dinner as a whole. Now I do, or a least will be more aware. This time with the pork and sweet potatoes I found the wine delicious with its rich red fruit flavor that is carried over into its medium bodied taste that has hints of leather. Pricy at $40, it is an excellent Pinot Noir but I would save it for special occasions.
Comments: 92 points Wine Spectator: “Firm and well-structured, with a ripe, rich, concentrated mix of wild berry, blueberry and strawberry flavors, with scents of wild flowers. Full-bodied, complex and layered on the finish. Drink now through 2017.” (09/10)
Alcohol: 14.7%
Bar code: 855622000118