If memory serves, this one made the biggest impression on me at our tasting last June. Cotiere is always a must-visit when in Santa Maria, after I met proprietor/winemaker Kevin Law at World of Pinot years back. I was impressed with his wines then and remain an enthusiastic advocate of all his wines. His Chards and Pinots from greater Santa Barbara County always deliver and he also does some Bordeaux varieties with equal deftness, from NorCal.
This has dusty aromas of bright, tart red fruit- cranberry, red cherry, currant and pomegranate. There are undercurrents of dry desert brush, chaparral and creosote.
It's lean entry to finish, but very flavorful. Warm spices lead into high toned red fruits like those on the nose. There are accents of hot clay along with some roasted mushroom umami and almost a hickory smoke aspect. It's complex while remaining lithe, has polished moderate tannins and lively acidity that keeps the flavor expanding through the finish.
The Bentrock Vineyard is in the Santa Rita Hills.
Aside from Mendocino and a few selections from the larger Sonoma Coast, I think some of my favorite Pinots stateside are coming from Santa Maria, SRH and the larger Santa Barbara area. Cotiere and others are well worth seeking out.boots?
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