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Q about Vino Volo and PN TNs

On my way from Europe, I had a longish layover stay at Dulles airport, where I chanced upon Vino Volo

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They are apparently trying to simplify the wine appreciation process by introducing a 2-d wine scale:
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Does this make any sense to you? And does anybody else use such a classification?

Being slightly hungry, I decided to have some of their appetizers together with wine samples (they offer 3 wines to taste side by side, the total amount of the 3 being about one glass). The samples are grouped thematically, I asked for the World Noir set. Here are the descriptions of the wines (they give you leaflets with descriptions of what you taste, I used them to take notes) that I scanned and OCRd, together with my notes.

1: CALIFORNIA

GRAPE Pinot Noir WINE Santa Rita Hills WINERY Sanford REGION Santa Barbara County YEAR 2002 $33 bottle

This "Sideways" wine is RICH with fruit and complexity. Red berry fruit is its focus with strawberry, red raspberry and preserved cherry. Elements like rhubarb, violet and vanilla complement the fruit flavors with additional complexity.

My notes: Dry, good tannins (I like tannic), but there was a funky note in the smell that made it almost undrinkable to me. No idea what that note was, never experienced anything like it before. Could it be the "rhubarb"? I've never tasted that, no idea what it's supposed to smell like. Grade: C

2: NEW ZEALAND

GRAPE Pinot Noir WINE Estate WINERY Amisfield REGION Central Otago YEAR 2003 $36 bottle

This RICH wine shows how successful New Zealand has become in creating world class Pinot Noirs. Flavors and aromas of dark wild strawberries, plums and raspberry jam combine with smooth, oaky vanilla, fennel seed, cola, and sassafras notes.

My notes: Very nice bouquet, but lacking both tannins and acidity; perception too sweet for my taste. Grade: B

3: BURGUNDY

GRAPE Pinot Noir WINE "Emotion de Terroirs" WINERY Vincent Girardin REGION Cote d' Or YEAR 2003 $27 bottle

This Pinot Noir from Burgundy has a focus on non-fruit flavors and aromas make for a BROODING wine. Violet and rose blossom with some autumn leaves and mulling spices are the first impression, rounded out by fruit components of candy apple and strawberry.

My notes: Very good balance of tannins and acidity; the aromas do not try to overwhelm, but play nicely along. Each sip was delightful. Grade: A

Reply to
Elko Tchernev
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No, it strikes me as too simple (fruit/non-fruit? c'mon!) and I wouldn't agree with their definition of BRIGHT, which to me denotes a fairly high acidity, too. And the idea of a BROODING Pinot Noir is amusing to me, though there certainly are some.

It's interesting to me to read the notes on 2003 Burgs starting to appear here and elsewhere. My kneejerk response was to dismiss the vintage as a sun-baked disaster, but it appears that some winemerks were able to make good wine even under those extreme conditions. I might have to give a few a look, though if their prices remain high, it'll be hard to entrust my $ to such a risky vintage.

Mark Lipton

Reply to
Mark Lipton

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