2011 Belle Glos "Clark and Telephone" Pinot Noir

Dark ruby color. Raw fruit juice and phenols on nose. Big, expansive semi-sweet raspberries and black cherries. Some sassafras. The finish is slightly sour with notes of green stems and onion skin. Very faint tannins giving it a somewhat overextracted lushness.

Not nearly as balanced and smooth as the 2008 and lacking the dense sweetness of the 2010's fruit.

89 points but might improve as it integrates provided the green finish doesn't become more prominent.

Ardeis in Seminole

I think the 2008 is the best Belle Glos PN they ever made. Have you had one recently? I think I have one in my cellar here and another in Florida. After I tasted the 2008 last year, I called all the wine stores in the area and all they had were the 2009s, also good but not up to the 2008.

Agreed Board-O, I liked the '08 C&T better than the '09s. These wines are not for everyone, sweet ripe fruit with new oak, definitely a crowd pleaser.

I completely agree.

My Belle Glos experience leads to same ranking:

'08>'10>'09>'11

I still have some 08's left...both Las Alturas and the C&T. Honestly the Las Alturas which was a bit harsh on release has eclipsed the C&T though both are in a very good drinking window right now.

i had the chance to try an 05' out of mag at Pinot Days in LA a few weeks ago and it was drinking very well... it hadn't developed any added complexity but was much more palatable and enjoyable then many younger examples of the wine i had tried.

Around my neck of the woods, there seems to be a huge price fluctuation with these Belle Glos Pinots. I've seen both the C&T and the Las Alturas priced anywhere from $26 to $60 per 750ml. Strange...

quote:

Originally posted by Ardeis:
2011 Belle Glos "Clark and Telephone" Pinot Noir

Raw fruit juice and ....notes of green stems and onion skin....89 points

Man, 89 points sounds generous.

PH

i have only had a handful of 2011 California wines so far, and none has impressed me. that included a nearly undrinkable bottle of Belle Glos' Meiomi, which typically is varietally-correct Cali pinot that's a no-brainer at under $25. i am *seriously* underwhelmed by the vintage so far.

quote:

Originally posted by PurpleHaze:

quote:

Originally posted by Ardeis:
2011 Belle Glos "Clark and Telephone" Pinot Noir

Raw fruit juice and ....notes of green stems and onion skin....89 points

Man, 89 points sounds generous.

PH

Ha... and dump this 89 into the CT scoring system.

Let me take a wild guess... the wine is rated anywhere from 88-92 points in CT.

quote:

Originally posted by wine+art:
Let me take a wild guess... the wine is rated anywhere from 88-92 points in CT.

Good guess. 86-93 so far....

PH

I found the 2010 Las Alturas to be much tighter and harsher than the 2010 C&T. Interesting you thought the same thing with the 08. Has anyone else experienced this, and does the Las Alturas eventually smooth out to match the tasty early release C&T?

quote:

Originally posted by Ardeis:

I still have some 08's left...both Las Alturas and the C&T. Honestly the Las Alturas which was a bit harsh on release has eclipsed the C&T though both are in a very good drinking window right now.