Wine & Spirits - April 2021 - 70

Year's Best US Pinot Noirs
mon spice and dark-cherry flavors. the texture is dense and supple, with firm tannins
for flank steak. -P.J.C. (2,788 cases) §
523165

90 | Stephen Ross

$38

2018 Edna Valley Pinot Noir (Best Buy) ^
Scents of soy and tar lead in this cool-climate
pinot, backing up a plummy core of fruit.
The oak gives the wine a caramel glaze, with
a hint of smoke on the finish that calls for
something grilled, like whole quail. -P.J.C.
(644 cases) §
523265

89 | Bishop's Peak

$24

2019 San Luis Obispo County Pinot Noir
(Best Buy) ^ This well-priced red made by the
Talley family smells like a lean cherry jam
dusted with cocoa, with flavors to match.
Cool sites in San Luis Obispo give this wine
its juicy brightness along with a frame of
acidity for a lively lunchtime pour. -P.J.C.
(1,375 cases) §

S A N TA BA RBA R A COUN T Y
523694

91 | Clendenen Family

$50

2017 Santa Barbara County Rancho La
Cuna Pinot Noir ^ The coolness of this Clendenen family vineyard in Los Alamos and
the lengthy elevage of the wine (24 months
of barrel aging) yields a wine of exotic savor,
with scents of sassafras, cola and root beer.
The flavors hew to those spice notes beneath
a fruit profile of intense dark plum. It's a wild
wine in search of a braise, like lamb stew.
-P.J.C. (180 cases) §
522924

91 | Brick Barn

the right weight for braised chicken thighs.
-P.J.C. (500 cases) §

S A N TA M A R I A V A L L E Y
523242

95 | Scar of the Sea

$64

94 | Native9

$65

2018 Santa Maria Valley Block Q Bien Nacido Vineyard Pinot Noir ^ One of the most
expressive bottlings of Bien Nacido pinot
noir I've tasted, this wine's old-vine depth
of fruit originates in a parcel of 40-year-old
Pommard-clone vines. It offers an array of
exotic aromatics-licorice root, turned earth,
cinnamon, dried plum, pepper, sea wrack
and tea. All of this informs the palate, the
flavors dark within the spice mélange, presented with an unusual combination of tension and grace, the finish drawn together by
fine-grained tannins. A thrill to drink now
and well worth cellaring. § -P.J.C.
523235
2014 Santa Maria Valley Rancho Ontiveros Vineyard Pinot Noir ^ James Ontiveros
sent a vertical of the pinot noirs from Rancho Ontiveros, his Central Coast vineyard
from his family's ancestral property, part of
the original Rancho Tepusquet land grant.
The wines share an old-school character-
this 2014 is all about savor at this stage of
its life, with scents of tobacco leaf, sundried
tomato skin and caramel. All of this rallies
around dried plum and fig fruit, conveyed on
the palate by means of a thoroughly seductive, suede-like texture, balanced, composed,
with an uncanny grace. -P.J.C. (250 cases) §

$75

2017 Santa Ynez Valley Reserve Pinot Noir ^
This wine's savory scents of rye and cracked
wheat accompany cherry and plum flavors.
It's a quiet, balanced red with humus-like
earth notes, a firm texture and fine mineral
tannins for thin sliced tri-tip. -P.J.C. (364
cases) §
522923

90 | Brick Barn

90 | Kendall-Jackson

$45

2018 Santa Barbara County Jackson
Estate Los Robles Pinot Noir ^ Warm with a
ripe cherry and berry scent and velvety red
fruit flavors, this wine is simple, supple and
rounded with a mild grip of tannin-just

70

WINE & SPIRITS

APRIL 2021

$40

2018 Santa Maria Valley Bien Nacido Vineyard Pinot Noir ^ This is lighter and prettier
than La Bauge au Dessus, which also contains
Bien Nacido fruit (and is also recommended
here). There's a refined floral scent, fruit blossoms and peppery berry aromas to go along
with a cinnamon kiss of oak. The flavors bear
out this refinement, lean and composed, the
texture suave and elegant. This is built to age,
or to serve with beef bourguignon. -P.J.C.
(250 cases) §

521337

93 | Chanin

$55

93 | Native9

$65

93 | Scar of the Sea

$28

2018 Santa Maria Valley Bien Nacido
Vineyard Pinot Noir ^ This tiny-production
pinot is briary and pretty, with aromas of
smoke, sea wrack and wild strawberry. The
fruit elements-strawberry and raspberry-
are concentrated and framed in fine tannins;
for game. -P.J.C. (W&S 10/20; 96 cases) §
523234
2013 Santa Maria Valley Rancho Ontiveros Vineyard Pinot Noir ^ This wine's maturity reflects the warmth of the drought vintage of 2013 in the south Central Coast. It
smells of molasses, caramel and tobacco leaf,
its dark dried-cherry flavors framed by a soylike savor. Drink now for a glimpse of California's recent past. -P.J.C. (250 cases) §
523241

$44

2017 Santa Ynez Valley Pinot Noir ^ Scents
of cinnamon and dried tomato take on a bit
of dried fruit character with air. The wine
lasts on a whiff of tobacco smoke, a cool
black-cherry core of fruit and firm, refined
tannins. -P.J.C. (915 cases) §
523044

93 | Au Bon Climat

523698

93 | Au Bon Climat

$35

2017 Santa Maria Valley La Bauge Au-Dessus Pinot Noir (Best Buy) ^ Drawn from Bien
Nacido and the Clendenen Family vineyards,
this wine's smoky black-cherry fruit gets
richer with air, lingering on a scent of mulled
berries. The flavors remain smoky and dark,
with a concentrated but elegant savor, quiet
and refined, structured for a long cellar life.
-P.J.C. (1,730 cases) §
523699

2019 Santa Maria Valley Vino de los Ranchos Pinot Noir (Best Buy) ^ A blend of Central Coast pinot sources-Rancho Sisquoc,
Rancho Ontiveros and Bien Nacido vineyards-this wine feels cool and green, with a
red-berry scent and herbal back notes of tarragon and bay laurel. What starts out tense
and grainy smooths out and lengthens after
a day, surprisingly fleshy for its light weight,
finishing with lithe acidity. A steal for the
price. § -P.J.C.



Wine & Spirits - April 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - April 2021

Contents
Wine & Spirits - April 2021 - Cover1
Wine & Spirits - April 2021 - Cover2
Wine & Spirits - April 2021 - 1
Wine & Spirits - April 2021 - 2
Wine & Spirits - April 2021 - Contents
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Wine & Spirits - April 2021 - Cover3
Wine & Spirits - April 2021 - Cover4
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/winespirits/2024spring
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/winespirits/2023winter
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/winespirits/2023fall
https://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/winespirits/2023summer
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