A Couple of Pricey but Pleasing Pinots

Hotel Biron here in San Francisco served Stef and I a couple of lovely not-under-$20 per bottle Pinot Noirs last night. Stef sipped an unfiltered 2004 Siduri from the Santa Rita Hills and I had a super-friends-fruity 2000 Silver, Lake Marie Vineyards, Santa Barbara, straight out of Sideways country. As for this Sideways phenomenon, a friend told me she is embarrassed to order Pinot Noir because of run on Pinot that ensued after that movie. (Kind of like the rush to cut up the sweatshirts after Flashdance came out) I am not quite embarrassed to order it, but there is a certain cringe factor. Anyhow, did you all know that there is a website devoted to pimping wines ingested by characters in the movie? Some of the site's wine club selections are accompanied by notes identifying Miles (the failed writer wine snob), Maya (the hot horticultural student he somehow manages to bag) or Jack (funny but infantile womanizer) as the drinker or picker of a particular product. For under $20, the Sideways Pinot pickins are slim. But such is the world of Pinot. Instead, choose the J. Wilkes 2004 Pinot Blanc, Bien Nacido Vineyards for $20 -- (A "Maya's Favorite!!!!")
or a Fess Parker, 2001 Syrah, Santa Barbara County for $20. (A Jack's Club Selection!!!) If you aren't in a drinking kind of mood, you can always buy a Sideways long-sleeved unisex T-shirt ($19). As Peppermint Patty shouts after Marcie botches the cooking of the Easter eggs for the third time....ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!
On a Cheapfunwines note: there was one interesting Pinot for under $20 offered by the Sideways people...Heron 2003 Pinot Noir, California for just $11.99. They say this is a remarkably elegant and complex Pinot Noir. One of the two best "Under $20 Pinots" we've tasted. Miles did not pick this one.

On to the wines we tasted last night. The Silver($40 a bottle) was a fantastic Pinot, an earthy mix of dark fruit. It's a complex wine with a spicy kick and a lingering finish. I'd give it 3 1/2 stars, easily because it was truly excellent.
The Santa Barbara News Press says this wine has "plenty of bright red and black fruits here to chew on, with a Burgundian earthiness to keep things interesting. The spice rack is in evidence here as well as a pleasant touch of decaying leaves and forest floor. But the lasting impression is that of concentrated fruit that shows good finesse." This wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered. From the winery: This Pinot is earthy, with red and black fruit, huge spice, and lots of finesse. Sourced from a 50 acre block of the old Santa Maria Hills Vineyard. It’s more tradionally Burgundian in style than the Julia’s bottling. The 2000 shows layered spice aromas, coffee, and dark blackberry fruit flavors. It’s balance of fruit and acidity makes a lively mid-palate. The finish is long and delicious. This is a tightly wound wine that has been given extra bottle age to allow it to open and soften in bottle, exposing its many layers."
Stef's Siduri (about $56 a bottle, ouch!) was a cool, cloudy berry color because it was unfiltered. It was less fruity than the Silver, but nicely balanced. Here are a bunch of Cellartracker reviews of this cherry berry wine, which many people seem to be gaga over. Again, apologies for including a few wines that are over $20. I consider these special occasion bottles or, most often, wines we buy by the glass, which definitely makes them cost under $20. To make amends, I will always include under $20 recommendations in blog entries where I discuss the pricier stuff!

April 21, 2006

A Couple of Pricey but Pleasing Pinots

Find the Latest Wines at Wine.com