Bright ruby with thin clear edges. Concentrated ginger ale, sweet and rich. Packed with cinn & nutmeg, coriander and smoky twigs. That’s really about it. Ripe in a way so yummy it leaves little to the imagination. Edgier than nearby SMV, basking in much more spice but all so one-dimensional. No complexity, no finesse, a little minerality deep in the nose but otherwise quite cloying. Probably an almost perfect restaurant-bling bottle. Everybody’s gonna love it after the person entrusted with the wine-list sweatingly makes his decision.
In the mouth, nothing surprising. A bit more complex. Brilliant acid and more minerality, cutting and sharp, intense and off-setting of the simplistic flabbiness of the nose. An absolute 10/10 concentration of vibrant fruit, blowing the top of your head off with first sip–no, it was probably the third sip before I fully grasped how decadent the mouth-feel is. Roasted corn on a fire, teriyaki jerky, a bitter pill coated in chocolate and caramel. Awkward not-quite-bitter tannin like burnt oil or something–touching on oxidation–complete the wine. There’s not much redeeming this bottle. I can’t convince myself to like it. Too many issues. When I first tasted this wine I thought it was better than the nose. Now that I am tasting it, I think the bouquet deserves more plaudits. Who knows. Who cares. While some of Laetitia’s special selection offerings are phenomenal, I can’t drink stuff like this.
2013 LAETITIA Pinot Noir ‘Reserve du Domaine’ Arroyo Grande Valley 14-3
Stephen McConnell 