Cork and Demon's First Ever WBW Entry: Bellarine Estate's 'Phil's Fetish' Pinot Noir, 2003, Australia
It's just shy of 7 a.m., and even before my precious life-giving Coffee, I have tasted this wine. Why? Because I am dedicated to bringing the people the wine information they crave. And I fricking forgot it was WBW until like, a half hour ago. I bolted up out of my warm nest and got to slurping.Is this the best time to taste a wine? I've been told: first thing in the morning, before your palate has been ravaged by java and bear claws, is an ideal moment to capture all the nuances of a great wine. Having put it to the extreme test, I can now say that I disagree: my palate, like the rest of my sleepy self, needs a good couple of hours of uptime before plunging into the work of disecting Pinot Noir. But I tasted it nevertheless, and here's what I got:
Bellarine Estate 2003 "Phil's Fetish" Pinot Noir
Even in a proper Burgundy glass, this juice is still shy on the nose. Savory cherry fruit + a touch of cola nut + a touch of tea = Cherry Cola! A good swish and slurp gave me mouth watering bing cherry that developed pleasantly into something kinda meaty, and a little backnote of herbs. Very soft finish. Verdict: Australia. The Australians love the big fruit and the tiny tannins, don't they? Having made that little smart remark, I have to say that it's not a bad wine at all. I happened to like the little burst of cherry fruit goodness, and were I to be in the mood for fruit (as I am in the morning), I think it would hit the spot nicely.
This friendly Pinot will not blow your mind, but it might go well with a pork tenderloin, served to fussy in-laws who question your obsession with wine.
Clinkies.
posted by taj at 10/05/2005 04:53:00 AM
3 Comments:
Now I'm *quite* curious to hear how the coffee worked with the taste of pinot still on your tongue!
A real trooper! Thanks for sacrificing your morning palate!
It is good to hear that coffee is, once-again, a palate cleansing life-affirmer!
Some friends and I went on a pilgrimage to California wine country (north of Geyserville). After a particularly long evening, we were awakened by the lawn crew attending to the property next morning. One heroic member of our crew made the splendiferous discovery that certain zinfandels really rock with a strongly-brewed coffee. We soon all followed suit.
Not something we've visited since then, but certainly fun to keep in your mind on holiday.
You do some great wine writing, by the way! I'm a Neanderthal-ish sub who is still upon my way to discovering the ins and outs of wines. I am really working to go beyond, "um, yeah, I like that one!", or, "errrr, that's kind of... alcoholish...".
Good to read the words of a chick whos got a good, yet non-poncy-grasp upon it.
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