2012 Bearwallow Vineyard Pinot Noir
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Tasting notes
Notably ripe yet attractively fresh black cherry and raspberry aromas are interwoven with notes of menthol and a wide range of spice elements. The exceptionally rich, round and very suave medium weight plus flavors possess an opulent mouth feel, all wrapped in a dusty and long if noticeably warm finale.
Critic scores
Average Score
The Wine Advocate
Jancis Robinson MW
More reviews and scores
From bottle, the 2015 Pinot Noir Bearwallow Vineyard is showing very well, unwinding in the glass with incipiently complex aromas of ripe plums, sweet soil, spices and subtle rose hip. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, with an ample, generous attack that segues into a firmer, tauter mid-palate. With a good core of fruit framed by fine-grained, stony tannins, it concludes with a saline finish. It's more tight-knit than the 2016 rendition and will need more time. (WK) 92+
Coming from Anderson Valley in California's North Coast, the 2012 Pinot Noir Bearwallow Vineyard is distinctly different than the Santa Cruz Mountain releases. Full, layered and supple, with possibly more mid-palate flesh than the slightly more racy 2012s from further south, this beauty gives up lovely notes of passion fruits, wild herbs (thyme, rosemary, lavender), eucalyptus and spice. Medium to full-bodied, layered and multi-dimensional on the palate, with a brilliant texture, this impeccably balanced beauty will age gracefully for another decade or more.
Bright crimson. Very rich and intense on the nose. Forest floor and chock full of flavour. Bracing finish. Good structure. (JR)