Well after enjoying many incredible pinot's at the MSP offline, I have found myself craving some great pinot. The local wine stores up here have a fairly limited selection and I was hoping to get some recent tasting notes and a push in the right direction. Below is the list of Pinot's I'm looking at.

2001 Dom. Serene Yamhill $27.99
2000 Dom. Serene Evenstad $42.99
2000 Dom. Serene Grace $66.99
2001 Ponzi $29.99
2001 Rex Hill $22.99
2002 Rex Hill $22.99

I had the Serene Yamhill and rated it about 87. No formal notes. I managed to purchase my bottles for $20/btl. I haven't had any recent vintages of Rex Hill, but had several bottles of the 1999 and thought it was a very nice pinot for the price.

out of those selections, i'd go with the Ponzi... i havent had any listed either so, my opinion is more of the "if i was browsing..."

The 2000 Domaine Serene Evenstad is $45 around here, and I think it is rather pricey. However, I heard it won a blind tasting at EWS so bought 6 bottles! Still, I thought it was only about a 90 pointer!

I would not buy the Grace--too expensive and I have not tried the Yahill. The best buy might be the 2002 Rex Hill, but I have not tried it either, but I would take two bottles of the RH to one bottle of the Evenstad! Just a thought!

Stay away from the 01's. Tasted them in barrel, shortly after bottling and recently. Have yet to be impressed. Though some are good, they are not worth the $$.

We visited Rex Hill a year and a half ago and tasted through their line-up. There wasn't anything worth buying, but we didn't get to taste the 2002s. I'd spend my money elsewhere.

Chilly,

The '00 Evenstad, and the '02 Rex are likely your best bets. Grace is usually a nice wine, but I balk at the price.

Ponzi always makes a nice wine; it would be OK too, but the '01 vintage isn't going to be as meaty as the 00 and 02 (but personally, I like '01s). Also, this is a somewhat high price for the regular Ponzi. Should be mid $20s.

Ended up going with the 2000 Dom Serene Yamhill. Got it for $22.39 with discount. I'm not sure how long these have been on the shelf so thought I would start with this one and then if its ok try the Evenstad.

Chilly,

I found the Yamhill to be "OK" / "competitive" for the price. It's not a bad pinot, I just didn't find it very exciting. Definitely a different animal than the DS Reserve.

Let us know what you think of it.

BHV, when's that Le Cadeau being released?

Chilly,
Just picked up 3 each of these Ore Pinots...

02' St. Innocent Freedom Hills $29.95 RP-94
02' St. Innocent Seven Hills $29.95 RP-94+

at Thomas Liq in St. Paul

Maybe you can still find them in Fargo?
M61

BHV, I'll be sure to post some notes after we try it. Most likely I will head back and pick up the Evanstead and possibly the Grace, with my discount prices would be 34.39 and 53.59 respectively.

M61, unfortunately we have a very limited selection of Pinot in Fargo wine shops. The one's that I posted are the cream of the crop up here. It is probably one of the smallest sections in all the wine shops. Maybe I'll have to head down that way to pick up some good Pinot.

Chilly, anytime you want to swing down we can arrange a day of shoping and a mini offline.

We'll head your way this summer.

Board-O,

We're still looking at late Spring as the likely timeframe for the Le Cadeau release.

Cheers,

2001 Domaine Serene Yamhill Pinot Noir - Nice wine, but nothing special. Muted nose of red fruits and cola. Slightly earthy and acidy(?). Light sediment.

I need to find a few of the wines I liked at the Pinot tasting, or some that are similiar. My top 5 from the tasting were 1998 Domain Drouhin, 2002 Le Cadeau, 1998 Hanzell, 1996 Conn Valley, and 2002 Sea Smoke Botella. Any recommendations on what to try if I can't find these exact wines?

Chilly,

I could offer many recommendations... but you need to be able to find them. If we're limited to the list above, well..., it is what it is. That said, the "Evenstad" really should be a pretty-good bottle of wine. Maybe a wee bit pricey, but not substantially so.

Why not schedule a shopping trip over here in MSP? Or come see us in Oregon?

I don't have my list handy; is ND a "ship to" state? I take it that it is not based on some of the dialog here.

As for the Yamhill, your findings are very much in keeping with mine. Not "bad"; just "uninspired" and hard to get excited or enthused over.

BHV and M61, I think we'll have to try and make it that way in the spring for a offline and shopping trip. Unfortunately ND doesn't seem to get much selection so I tend to order 75% of my wine from mailing lists or online now.

Chilly,

I'm buying at least 75% of my wine on the internet or off mailing list now too. I hit the local stores just often enough to find the occassional gem that isn't over priced. One advantage I've noticed in the Twin Cites is that we have many fewer people chasing some of the really hard to find wines like Dauvissat Chablis or Rousseau Burgundies then they do on the west coast.

I haven't had any of these but I thought the '01 Evenstead was a really nice wine. I've had most of the '02 Serene linup several times each and have thought the quality of higher priced wines didn't merit the price increase versus the Yamhill. Of course, here the Yamhill is $35 and the Grace $100 (if you can find it) so the gradient may be a bit steeper. I'd buy several bottles at the $20 eyesintime got it at.

I'll probably give the 2000 Evanstad a go, with my discount it will be about $35. Is the Grace worth trying at $54?

chilly - i believe it is still overpriced even at $54, but I have never been the biggest fan of Dom Serene

I'd buy the Yamhill, see if you like the style, and then consider the Grace which is very much built the same. For what it's worth I probably wouldn't buy another bottle of the '02 even at $54.

Chilly,

The Evanstad at $35 is a pretty good deal. The wine is clearly worth that-- whether or not it is your style, and you like it, I can't say. But it is good wine.

Grace is made from a relatively new vineyard. Good clone(s), good farming, good winemaking and a good wine, but I think it's a bit steep even at $54. At a minimum, try the reserve first.

If you can get wine shipped in, I'd suggest you try for some Ponzi Reserve 2002. Try calling the Ponzi Wine Bar in Dundee; or the winery (near the Portland area). This was, for me, the standout wine at the IPNC last year. It needs some time, but it is really good.

BHV,

I'll see if I can track down the Ponzi Reserve, thanks for the recommendation. I'll probably take the next step up and try the Evanstad. I also ordered a couple bottles over the weekend to try as well. I picked up the 2002 Chehalem Pinot Noir Ridgecrest and 2002 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Kanzler for about $35 and $40 respectively.

CW

quote:

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I picked up the 2002 Chehalem Pinot Noir Ridgecrest and 2002 Kosta Browne Pinot Noir Kanzler for about $35 and $40 respectively.

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Chilly,

I do not know the actual retail price of the 2002 K-B Kanzler as I've only had it thanks to DJ Hombre's generosity. However, I can say that based upon its quality, I think $40 is a pretty good score. The wine is very tasty.

a