May 2007 Wine Tasting Notes:
2004 Labyrinth Pinot Noir, Bien Nacido Vineyard, Santa Mari Valley.
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This Pinot Noir is medium-depth, red-garnet in color. On the nose, it scintillates with medium intensity cola accented by brisk spicy notes of caraway and pepper. Light aromas of cherry ad currants are followed by earth and vanilla notes. The palate offers bright red cherry flavors and a citrus zest note embellished by mineral characteristics. This light-bodied wine is delicate in mouth feel with a juicy, mouth watering quality. The medium length finish resonates the vivid red cherry and citrus zest character. |
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Cumulative Score: 89 breakdown 13.0% Alcohol $27.00 Retail Production volume unspecified. |
Brisk and lively, with a snappy spice edge, this 2004 Bien Nacido Pinot Noir is multilayered. Among its numerous assets is its vibrancy and youthfulness, evidence of Ariki Hill's ability to maintain finesse in Pinot Noir. This wine will cellar well for another 5 years, minimum. Try it with baked salmon in leek and lemon sauce. |
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More reviews of Labyrinth Wines More on the Santa Maria Valley AVA |
Sourced from 3 acres on steep slopes of Bien Nacido Vineyard, this bottling consists of a blend of Clones 13 and Pommard of Pinot Noir.
Pinot Noir, the noble Burgundian grape, is often described as "difficult" to grow but the wine is beautiful and complex when circumstances are favorable. It is one of the oldest grape varieties to be vinified. The tiny (~60 square miles) Côte d'Or in Burgundy, France has been the benchmark for Pinot Noir for centuries. Nonetheless, it is planted worldwide. It is often described as delicate and light bodied and having a soft texture. The aromas and flavors are the most distinct and identifiable and most complex of all varieties. Common fruit aromas are: cherry, raspberry, ripe tomato and strawberry. It can express floral notes or rose or violet. Spice is a big element of Pinot Noir: cardamom, caraway, cinnamon, cola, clove, nutmeg, pepper, rosemary and sassafras. Most California Pinot Noirs made today (with some exceptions) rarely have the make up to last past a decade but with age they can show tobacco and smoke characteristics. (read more)
Acquired as two separate plots in 1969 by brothers Steve and Bob Miller, the 900-acre Bien Nacido ("Well Born" in Spanish) Vineyard, is one excellence and custom, block-by-block farming Santa Maria Valley AVA, Bien Nacido enjoys a strong marine cooling effect. However, its location does not guarantee a uniformly cool microclimate in every nook and cranny of the ranch. Elevations of 700-800 feet and with some blocks situated in draws of the foothills of the San Rafael Mountains (which shielded them from the cooling ocean winds) the vineyard boasts rather varied microclimate. The well draining alluvial soils range from sandy, to shaly to clay loam in composition. In addition to the world-famous Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, Italian varieties such as: Pinot Gris (Grigio), Barbera, Nebbiolo, Refosco and
The hot 2004 growing season was one of the shortest in the history of the state. Harvest came two to three weeks earlier than usual, at the start of August. Statewide reports of light to normal yields of excellent quality fruit with superb extraction raised anticipation of the wines to come. However, red wines from this vintage are proving variable by our experience. While this "crop of crops" was lauded as producing highly extracted fruit, some wines have been rather unbalanced while others were stunning an memorable. This results from variables in farming, winemaking techniques (particularly the heavy-handed approach to over-the-top extraction), and AVA.
Ariki (Riki) Hill, a New Zealand native, grew up on New Zealand Pinot Noir. After spending 2 decades working in the food industry overseeing liquid food processing including milk processing in the Middle East, he made his first foray into winemaking in 1982 with New Zealand Pinot Noir. He came to California to pursue his passion and worked with Lane Tanner, now his wife. He started the Labyrinth label in 2000. He makes small lots of Pinot Noir sourced from the Central Coast and Australia’s Yarra Valley. Bien Nacido Vineyard is a core staple of his Central Coast program with White Hills Vineyard added with the 2004 vintage. Riki makes his wines express supple, bouncy fruit flavors, bright acids that bode well for longevity and softer tannins. Aged mainly in neutral barrels, labyrinth wines always have some bottle maturity on release. These wines are well balanced, age-worthy and very food friendly.
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5 points |
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Nose |
3 points |
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Palate |
3 points |
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Finish |
3 points |
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Tannins |
5 points |
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Acidity |
5 points |
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Alcohol |
5 points |
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Aging potential |
2 points |
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Overall quality |
8 points |
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