By Three Thirsty Corks

One of the Thirsty Corks recently found her way to a Pinot Noir wine tasting event hosted in a private home nestled high in the foothills of the Sandias. The gathering comprised new and old connections of friends, colleagues and third party acquaintances.

The hostess provided a nice display of perfect wine faire, with breads, cheeses, grapes, canapés and nuts.

Each set of guests brought a bottle of Pinot Noir, some from the vineyards of California, others from New Zealand, Italy and Argentina. This was truly a global wine tasting experience.
I was the lone Thirsty Cork, so my job was to correctly identify all the labels before the consuming began, and though my eyes aren’t what they used to be, I managed to evaluate the tiny print on each bottle and get the job done.

We were encouraged to start with the first bottle and go down the line, as they were set up in order of weight. Each glass was filled with about an ounce, and some of us made sure to take two tastes from each bottle just to double check the flavor. This mixed with food, lively chatter, me jotting down notes as fast as I could, and keeping up with who was on what bottle was fun but not easy. By the fourth bottle, the job had become a challenge. I was lucky to have extensive experience in the journalism trade, and so I continued scribbling notes.

Here is a quick reference guide:
No. 1: 2006 Chateau St. Jean Pinot Noir, Sonoma County, CA
No. 2: 2007 Cambria Pinot Noir, Santa Maria Valley, CA.
No. 3: 2007 Marlboro Pinot Noir, Brancott, New Zealand
No. 4: 2007 Luigi Bosca Reserva Pinot Noir, Bodega Luigi, Argentina
No. 5: 2007 Venezia Giulia Tipica Russa, Jermann, Italy
No. 6: 2007 La Crema Pinto Noir, Sonoma Coast, CA

Ratings and descriptions:
No. 1 opened the tasting and got an all around thumbs up. It was described as peppery and light.
Nos. 2 and 6 may have gotten lost in the mix of excellence. One drinker I must report did give both these bottles a thumbs down.
No. 3 was distinctly found to be the richest and most full-bodied bottle. Its intense flavor would probably be perfect with New Zealand beef.
No. 4 was, interestingly, the first bottle to empty. Tasters found the flavors to be light, smooth, soft and aromatic.
No. 5 was informally voted the best by the friendly and now very happy tasters. They found its flavors edgy, smooth, yummy and fantastic. It was the most rare of the group in that Italy does not produce much Pinot Noir.

Having enough food to coat the stomach was perfect. Having a themed tasting by grape was a great way to taste how many flavors can be pulled out of one family of grapes. This Thirsty Cork was familiar with Pinot Noir and even at one time favored it, but prior to this gathering considered it full bodied and smooth. In this tasting I found it could also be light, fruity and peppery.