Tasting Note: Pinot Nior (2013-04-10)

Speaking of my favorite wines, Pinot Noir is always on top of any reds. Four years ago, I was about to get home, and one of my neighbors just opened a bottle of American Pinot Noir. I smelled the most breathtaking perfumed aromas, so I drank my first bottle of Pinot Noir. Then, I started a long journey of Pinot Noir tasting for one year. Some wines are just perfect, but you can't sense its heart; some wines touch your soul with illusion. This is a matched wine I'm looking for.  I don't like the following quote, but it is so true about Pinot Noir: "the most romantic of wines, with so voluptuous a perfume, so sweet an edge, and so powerful a punch that, like falling in love, they make the blood run hot and the soul wax embarrassingly poetic." (an American men's fashion magazine)

This is the first time I've tried to taste Pinot Noir from different regions at the same time. Therefore, I asked myself: "what are the regions came into my mind first?" The first one is always from Burgundy, then California, Germany and New Zealand (Central Otago). For Spätburgunder, German name of Pinot Noir, it's a shame I can't find any one under $60 in the store.

A little bit of information about Pinot Noir:
Pinot Noir is a French name of a grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. It has dark purple (black) and thin skin. The home of Pinot Noir is the Burgundy of Frence. It's been very popular, and now, it has planted around the world. As of wine making, light tannin can be expected. The grape prefers chalky clay soil; it's common to produce mineral wines.

1. 2007 Domaine Fontaine-Gagnard Volnay 1er Cru Clos des Chênes (Côte de Beaune) (~$40)
  First impression: sitting on the slope of the hill with a fruit basket and looking down to a wide open plain, tranquil and peaceful. A large scale landscape.
  Day 1: fruity but subtle; after drink it: green berries; acidity is high but balanced.
  Day 2: Now, I felt I opened the fruit basket. an unpeeled grapefruit with some strawberry can be detected. I enjoyed the breeze of fruits and the view of grand plain. I'm calmed.
  Day 3 and 4 are similar. The quality remained enhanced the enjoyment.

extra information:
(France > Burgundy > Cote de Beaune > Volnay > Volnay Premier Cru > Volnay Clos des Chenes)

2. 2007 Clos LaChance Pinot Noir (Santa Cruz Mountains) (~$25)
  First impression: wine of spring, jammy berries and blooming flowers. A small scale garden.
  Day 1: It's jammy with distinguishing fruity aromas: fig and Strawberry. It might be made from ripen grapes.
  Day 2: The Jammy and sweet aromas were gone, but ripen fresh grapefruit meat and lavender were detected.
  Day 3 and 4, I already felt like I'm eating my luxury breakfast without sensation.

3. 2006 Mitre Rocks Pinot Noir (Central Otago) (~$25)
  First impression: dry, sun dried fruit and sun dried flowers. It's deep and complicated.
  Day 1: Very intense fruits and flowers combo: dried Figs, dried Roselle, and dried Crataegus. It's felt like some kind of Chinese herbal tea with dried berries. Actually, it made me hungry. It's also very oaky and high acid; somehow I didn't felt very right.
  Day 2, 3 and 4, I saved the second glass for food pairing. any high protein food I've tried can be a good match to this wine.  The wine is neutralized.

Conclusions:
I have to admit I made a mistake. I thought I picked up the 2007 Central Otago, but 2006. I can't figure out the sun-dried feeling is from the region or the year. Anyways, all this three bottles are very good and high quality. I would drink the first bottle when I want to enjoy a peaceful and quite moment; the second bottle is vivid, and I would drink it with friends with(out) dinning; the third bottle is complicated. I'm not sure I drank it in the right way. I would drink it with simple herbal spiced grilled or roasted meat.