Pin-ooooh Noir

I love it when a good wine has the same affect on each person regardless of when opened or tasted. That’s why I had to (against my own misgivings of broadcasting this wine) post about a 2001 East Block Pinot Noir recently released from library. Every time I have been present upon opening of this wine, any new taster has had the same audible reaction upon nose to rim of the glass – “ooooh!”

Medici 2001 East Block Pinto Noir
This wine is retro! Back to the tradition of what I think Oregon Pinot Noir is all about. The classic coke of Pinot (try the coke vs. classic coke challenge) it’s the better recipe and evoking thoughts of earlier less over-potent Pinot Noir expressions. What do I mean by that? Well without getting into various preferences of wine by some wine advocates; in my opinion many current Pinot Noir are big bodied, high alcohol, big fruit up front. I am preferable to the lower alcohol, more delicate and perfumed subtle layered wines some vintners still express and I feel more past wine had.

The color in this Pinot Noir was translucent ruby red clear enough to read tasting notes through; that tugged childhood memory strings of the color red of strawberry freezer jam. This wine was so enrapturing and smelly in the nose too. Smelly can be a good thing, yes. As I put the rim of the glass to my nose I exclaimed, “ooooh” and prior tasters that had done the same just laughed. Black truffles, mild cherry fruit, and decaying long needle pine on a dank forest floor. That forest floor funk I think is a marker of good Oregon Pinot Noir. I could only have sniffed the glass stupefied and been happy, and in fact, I often did.

On the palate it was bright red cherries that transitioned to a coffee/burnt caramel that reminded me of a Mahattan Transfer song – I like the java jive and it likes me, coffee and tea, Pinot and me… Flavors then went to a more pine, forest floor matter/mushrooms, as it started to finish even had a mild numbing pine oil taste/sensation on the tip of the tongue before final solid strong with clay dust – it ended down and dirty like a roll in the mud. I encourage you to chase this wine through the woods, get down and dirty with it, cause it feels sooo good.
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