2010 Wine by Joe Pinot Noir

This weekend I've been drinking a 2010 Wine by Joe pinot noir that ran me $17.  WBJ is based in Dundee, Oregon, southwest of Portland, a little west of I 5.  (The picture isn't uploading, so imagine what an empty wine bottle looks like.)

Not the best, not the worst pinot I've drunk this fall.  For $17 it could have had a little more subtlety of flavors.  The label says spicy red cherry, and I'd agree with that.  I got the spiciness.  I drank it with BBQ sausage last night and it went well with that.  Also tried it with a piece of sharp cheddar, and the two were good together.

Recommended for a nice dinner or burgers from the grill.

2005 Valsacro Dioro Rioja

Taking a break from my winter's drinking of pinot and petite sirah, I drank a 2005 Valsacro Dioro rioja from the basement that I'd bought last winter.  I don't remember what it ran me, I'm guessing around $10.

It tasted like, well, a rijoa, definitely not a thin-bodied pinot or a slightly sweet petite sirah.  Very full bodied, dark red, tannins, fruity.

The first night that I opened it, it wasn't all that great just for sipping, and I did decant it for a little while first.  When I got back to it on Christmas Eve, I drank it with my attempt at Chinese food for Christmas Eve, pork with oyster sauce, and it really opened up and went well with the pork.  I'm betting that with one of the Iberian specialties like pork and clams it would be great.

A nice rioja.

2010 Irony Monterey County Pinot Noir

The last couple nights I drank the 2010 Irony Monterey County pinot noir, which ran me about $15.

I wanted to like it, especially for $15, but my reaction in general was meh.  Drinkable, ok with food, but nothing that really turned me on.  Just a pretty run-of-the-mill pinot.  The label says notes of cherry (what pinot doesn't?), strawberry (I can maybe say I got that here), and vanilla.

The label recommends this with a sun dried tomato pesto pasta, grilled seafood, or pizza, and it might open up better with one of those.  I'd say buy it when you see it on sale.

2009 Edna Valley Paragon Pinot Noir

This time, a 2009 Edna Valley Paragon pinot noir that ran me about $16.  Finally a pinot noir this fall that I can say I might drink again.

This hails from Edna Valley Vineyard in San Luis Obispo.  It had more body than most of the pinots I've drunk this fall, and seemed a little sweeter and less tannic.  The label says notes of plum, cherry, and pomegranate, which I think sums it up well.

They call it luscious; I'm not sure I'd go quite that far but it's pretty darn good.  I'd guess it would drink nicely with a tenderloin or maybe even something like chicken marsala.

2005 Concannon Petite Sirah

The last couple nights I've been drinking a 2005 Concannon Limited Release petite sirah, from California's Livermore Valley.  This ran me $15.

Petite sirah is this AVO's chief grape and Concannon is its second largest producer of wine, after Wente.  The label claims that Concannon was the first winery in the world to bottle petite sirah.

I like it.  This is one of my favorite petite sirahs thus far.  The label claims notes of cherry, and I got that.  It's a little sweeter perhaps than some.

I liked it for just sipping, which hasn't been the case with most of the petite sirahs and pinot noirs this fall, but it also went down really nicely with some sausages.  The label advises trying it with filet or lamb, and I bet those combinations would work well.

I let it go a couple nights before I finished the bottle and it had gotten a little sharper perhaps, but it still paired well with supper.  A nice wine.

2009 Domaine Poulleau Pere & Fils Burgundy

The last couple nights I tried a 2009 Domaine Poulleau Pere & Fils pinot noir from the Cote de Beaune (for where that is, see my last posting). It ran me $20 from invino.com.

Better than the $30 pinot a couple bottles back but still not my favorite red.  I didn't get particular notes from it, maybe a touch of "iron".  It wasn't particularly great for sipping, but it went down nicely with some food.

An OK pinot noir; I'm betting it would go well will filet or chateaubriand.

2004 Jean-Claude Boisset Pommard 1er Cru Clos de Verger

Rather than try to explain what Pommard 1er Cru Clos de Verger means, I'll quote the very helpful description from wine-searcher.com:  "Clos de Verger is a Premier Cru climat of the Pommard appellation in the Cote de Beaune. Wines made from grapes grown within the climat may claim the Pommard Premier Cru title and also cite the Clos de Verger name on their labels."

And where is the Cote de Beaune?  Also from wine-searcher.com: "The Cote de Beaune is a key wine-producing sub-region of Burgundy in eastern France. The name is also used for the local appellation Cote de Beaune, which covers entry-level wines, generally from the hilltop sites on the western side of the Cote d'Or escarpment. The title means 'Hillside of Beaune' – Beaune being a large market town and the epicenter of the Cote d'Or wine trade."

So there you have it.  This bottle cost me about $38 from invino.com, which I've just discovered and like thus far.  It's about the most I've paid for a bottle of wine.

And I really liked it (for $38, I should), one of the few pinot noirs I can say that about.  Most pinots, to my taste, are too light weight.  This one had more body to it.  There was a note to the first glass that I couldn't put my finger on.  I was thinking oregano, but wine-searcher says some of these wines get an extra oomph from iron in the soil, so maybe that's what it was.  The entry says the iron makes these wines more "masculine"; maybe that's why I enjoyed it more.

A very nice wine, it went well with food but it was also good just being sipped.  Highly recommended.