Light pinkish-garnet with distinctly burnished edges. Big savory nose puts Chinese 5-Spice on meat with dark soy sauce juxtaposed against brash barnyard and sweet cherry. Luxurious and polished, rich-smelling and elegantly appointed, it’s a Pinot checking all the boxes of beauty while not paving over varietal typicity.

In the mouth, it calmly follows suit, entering dense and dark-fruited, dank musty shadows playing on wet concrete walls, a deeply concentrated wine rubbed smooth to near-boring perfection. But Pinot taken to these levels is never boring. Green raspy edge invigorates slight heat, oak attempting to massage the bright berry, the sum of all parts leaving little dilemma between ripeness and the complexities of this variety taken to ‘Reserve’ levels. It does what all good Pinot should: impressing convoluted, black rich fruit onto the tongue despite transparency in the glass and sparking the senses with bite and layers of thought.

Not sure what to think about this bottle… I can’t find a vintage on it anywhere and it doesn’t appear on their website, plus multi-language items on the label make me feel like maybe this is a special restaurant or airline bottling. It’s very good, well-made and *safe*, looking to please a wide swath of Pinot-lovers, top-to-bottom.

NV HERZOG WINE CELLARS ‘Hurliman Winemaker Reserve’ Pinot Noir Central Coast 14.0

https://herzogwine.com/