"Rich and focused, yet also quite dry and charry, with a concentrated core of savory herb, ripe berry and loamy earth flavors. Drink now through 2016. Tasted twice, with consistent notes. 225 cases made. " (WS)
"The 2009 Pinot Noir Cargasacchi is a beautifully balanced, complete wine. An expressive bouquet leads to chiseled, delineated fruit in this striking Pinot. The Cargasacchi possesses dazzling inner perfume along with ethereal notes that linger on the finish. A blast of sweet red cherries leaves a lasting impression. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2019.
Husband and wife team Adam Lee and Dianna Novy make some of the most compelling wines in the Central Coast. The Siduri label focuses on Pinot Noir, while the Novy label (Dianna’s maiden name) is used for all other varieties. The strengths are the Pinots from the Santa Lucia Highlands. Another strength is the regional Pinots, which are also some of the finest values readers will find in American Pinot Noir (and Syrah under Novy). The single-vineyard designates are the best barrels from each site, while barrels that don’t make the cut go into the straight Santa Lucia Highlands and the Santa Rita Hills bottlings, a pretty straightforward approach. The only thing is that sometimes blended wines can be greater than the sum of their individual parts, which is why this approach is still used by a small number of traditionally minded producers in regions such as Piedmont and the Rhone. The Santa Lucia Highlands and Santa Rita Hills Pinots are without question the wines that offer the biggest bang for the buck here. The other wines are more variable across both labels, especially as one moves away from the Santa Lucia Highlands. I tasted the 2010s from tank, where the wines were awaiting imminent bottling, plus a selection of 2009s from bottle. The 2010s are the product of an unusual vintage. Vintage 2010 was, on average, a cool growing season with some heat spikes towards the end of the maturation cycle. These conditions resulted in wines with both higher sugars and acidities relative to the 2009s. Vintage 2009 was much more consistent across the board. The harvest took place between September 7 and October 12. Adam Lee reports he had more physiological ripeness in 2009 than in most years and was therefore able to use more whole clusters than in any year since 2005." (WA)
"There is a singularly toasty edge to this mildly perfumey wine that steers it away from the 2009 family norm, and, of all the new Siduri offerings, it is the most difficult to like in its youth. It is supple then tapered with a fair bite of acid-edged tannins at the finish, and, while presently concerned with structure more than anything else, it has just enough fruit at its heart to hold our interest and leave us at least halfway convinced of its ability to age into better. Reviewed: February 2011" (CG)
"Give this wine at least two years in the cellar. Tasted in February, it’s way too young to appreciate, being dominated by oak, tannins and primary cherry and pomegranate fruit. But it’s clearly well grown and made, and shows its pedigree in the superb structure and dryness." (WE)
Winery Notes:
Over the last few months we have had the opportunity to taste the 2009 Siduri Cargasacchi Vineyard Pinot Noir several times and with each opportunity we have become more and more impressed with the wine. We are now thinking this might be our finest Cargasacchi Pinot Noir since our debut release in 2001. However, that first wine was all about power, while this release shows more complexity and an uncanny sense of balance.
The 2009 vintage produced a good-sized crop at the Cargasacchi Vineyard. We worked closely with Peter Cargasacchi to drop any fruit that shouldn't be on the vine, such as clusters that would congest the fruit zone, clusters running behind in ripeness, or those not structurally sound, but that still left 3 tons per acre. Fortunately, the weather in 2009 remained perfect until late in the season, allowing this crop to ripen fully. We picked the vineyard on October 9, 2009 and fermented some of the fruit in tank (with approximately 33% whole cluster) while some of it was fermented in bins and completely destemmed. We also chose to let some of the wine ferment uninoculated, while we added yeast to other lots. Ultimately, we chose a mere 9 barrels to blend together to produce the finest possible Cargasacchi Vineyard designated Pinot Noir.
The 2009 Siduri Cargasacchi Vineyard Pinot Noir shows ample fruit up front, with plums, black cherry, and blueberry flavors all apparent upon first sip. The wine also has some earthy, mineral characteristics, and a bit more tannin than some of our other wines from the vineyard. Ultimately, however, it is this wine's balance that will make it appeal to both those who love younger Pinots and to those who want to cellar their wines. |
