Pinot-thing compares to you

I have to apologize to my faithful followers (ha!) – I have been a bit MIA lately. We have been out of town the last two weekends, which means we’ve been busy, busy, busy. We spent Memorial Day weekend at Lake Berryessa celebrating the 30th birthday of our friend Jocelyn. Obviously a slave to a theme like me, Jocelyn figured a weekend at the lake demanded the appropriate type of booze – PBR and two-buck Chuck. That’s right, over the course of two days, we knocked back our fair share of Charles Shaw Cabernet Sauvignon. And if y’all are lucky, I may blog about Charles Shaw Cab and its amazing ability to pair so nicely with homemade chocolate cake in a later post. Stay tuned for that…

Last weekend, we kicked off wedding season with back-to-back weddings in Sonoma County. On Friday, we celebrated the nuptials of my step-sister Brianna and her husband Brandon at the lovely Estate Restaurant in Sonoma. I started with bubbles since I love the festive and fun nature of champagne, especially at weddings. Plus, the champagne went so well with the oysters they were serving. I decided to stick with the bubbles (and lots of them) for the remainder of the evening – a decision that has made it impossible to review what I was drinking. I think you know what I mean. For what it’s worth, I do remember it was delicious.

On Saturday, we attended the wedding of our good friends Robert and Emily with a beautiful ceremony at Griffith Woods along the Russian River and an equally stunning reception at the Rancho Wikiup in Santa Rosa. Again, I started with sparkling wine because, again, we were having oysters. And again, it was a wedding and well, I just can’t help myself. But the couple had picked out a couple of wines that reflected both their tastes and the places they have lived (or want to live) over the years. One of those wines was a 2007 Octavia Pinot Noir from the Central Coast – a nod to San Luis Obispo, where the two met. Not knowing much about Pinots, and not yet having reviewed a Pinot Noir on the blog, I thought I would give it a taste and review, so Robert and Emily kindly let me take a bottle home after the wedding.

Pinot Noir is best suited to cooler, foggy appellations because the grapes bud and ripen early, and the longer the berries can stay on the vine before becoming too ripe, the more complex the resulting wine will be. So the Central Coast is a great place to grow this varietal because of its temperate climate and coastal influence. I tasted a few Pinots while living in San Luis Obispo, but I have to say, my knowledge of Central Coast wines in general is a little slim, so I was looking forward to getting a taste of one of the varietals that has made the region so famous.

I opened the Octavia last night and let it breath for quite a while before tasting. I immediately noticed its color – a deep, dark scarlet red, almost garnet. It was slightly translucent, which made me think that it would not be as heavy a wine as some. Without a trained palate for Pinots, I didn’t know what to expect in tasting the wine. Although I have to say I was a bit surprised when I stuck my nose in the glass. Right away I smelled a faint hint of jamminess, but soon that was overpowered by strong notes of bacon and mustiness. The more I swirled and sniffed, the more I got cured meats, like salami, bologna and even hot dogs(!) on the nose. Honestly, the more it opened up, the more it smelled like Oscar Mayer. Interestingly enough, however, that didn’t turn me off. One of my guilty pleasures is hot dogs, so admittedly, I got a little excited. And if a wine could smell so much like a Ball Park Frank, what would it taste like? I was about to find out.

The wine itself was definitely savory and carried through it the theme of cured meats, although not as strongly as on the nose. Not a very tannic wine, this Pinot was light and smooth, with a soft finish. The front palate showed more hints of fruit – I would say rhubarb – while the middle and back palate had a bit of earthiness to it. It wasn’t particularly complex or structured, but it wasn’t boring either. It was a very approachable, drinkable wine that would be easy to pair with food. In fact, we enjoyed it with turkey burgers and it complemented the meal just fine. Overall, I liked this wine. I would describe it as nice, light, easy, and simple – a nice introduction to Central Coast Pinot Noir, and a pleasant way to both remember our life in SLO and to celebrate Robert and Emily’s amazing wedding.

Amy Award: 3 stars (out of 5)
Spendy Scale: $18
Best Bet: A light summer meal or a beautiful Rancho-style wedding