Next up is a 2011 Lyric pinot noir from Santa Barbara. It ran me $19 from invino.com.
As I said last time, maybe pinot is finally growing on me, but I liked this one too and finished most of it the first night. I used some of it to cook some corned beef for St Patrick's Day (forgetting that it was $19 ...).
I caught notes of what I thought were violets when I poured the first glass. In terms of drinkability, no special subtlety of flavor, but it hangs together well.
In general a nice wine, and I'm betting it would pair great with grilled chops.