Virtual Tasting for Charity - Empty My Wallet, Help Me Support Laura's House (11/20 - 11/29)

This has been a tough year for many. We all know those challenges, some have felt them personally. To help with that, let’s do something positive and kick off the annual holiday tasting note challenge, carrying on the tradition we started around here more than 5 years ago to raise money for charity. For those new around here, the link below will show you the event we did last year at this time:

How do you participate? You open and post as many Pinot Noir tasting notes as you like, and I will pay $5 for every Pinot Noir TN that is posted here during the time period of 11/20 to 11/29. To go further, I will double the payment to $10 per TN if you post a photo of yourself with the wine. And, as an added bonus, my matching Wine Berserker donor that has supported me for so many years is locked again. So, the final amount raised will be matched, essentially doubling the value of every note posted. flirtysmile

At the end of the period, I will count the notes and make a donation to Laura’s House. The charity is about ending domestic violence, through emergency shelter services, counseling, transitional housing and community outreach. To learn more, you can click the following:

Starting posting your notes to this thread beginning 11/20 and let’s raise some money for a good cause.

I will happily match my very generous friend $5 per Pinot! PINOT UP!

More than 5 years running? This is the 8th!

This is the post from 2013 that started it all.

Anyone interested in hosting a week look here and all the previous virtual tastings are linked too. There’s a lot of positive rasta vibe in there.

bumpy bump

Just a clarifying question… is it Pinots OPENED 11/20-11/29? or TN posted 11/20-11/29?
i.e. if i open a pinot tonight, but post the note tomorrow after i wake up… does that count? I get it’s for charity so it probably isn’t so strict but just want to be a rule follower :smiley:

It will be the 20th in Greenwich when you open, Mark…if you were planning to open late afternoon, wait on it to make it official :slight_smile:

fred

You can open the bottle starting 11/20 and post the note anytime between then and 11/29.

Mike, myself and our anonymous matching donor look forward to getting this started…and, if you want to be a matching donor, to whatever degree you wish, please post (or anonymously and I’ll keep your name unpublished) and help us raise some bucks to combat domestic violence.

How do you post a photo? You think by now I would know how to do this!

At the bottom of the post editor. Click on attachments.
Click on add file. Click on photo library.
Click on the picture you want to post. Done.

A weird tip too — if you edit the photo, no matter how slightly and in what way — it will come out right side up when you post it. If you don’t edit the photo, some of the time it ends up sideways or upside down.

That’s a pro-tip right there!

I’ll donate $25 for every tasting note I post.

Don’t forget PN bubbles count too.

Thank you buddy. We appreciate the generosity. [highfive.gif]

Does a Blanc de Noir count? I have some medical issues that require reduction of wine consumption, and I am not wasting it on Pee-No, but I am willing to open some pinot-based bubbly.

Two posts above… neener

Have to admit this is one of my favorite threads every year - and I am surprised that I will be the first here with a TN. Starting out with a simple village-level wine, in the case the 2012 Pavelot Savigny-Les-Beaune.

Pretty good, more red fruits than black, good acidity and persistence. Not overly complex, but enjoyable, and at least IMO, not overly rustic, which I know can be a complaint regarding Pavelot’s wines. I could see this continuing to drink well for another 5-10 years.

  • 2018 DuPuis Pinot Noir Le Benedict - USA, California, North Coast, Anderson Valley (11/20/2020)
    So soon after arrival, probably too soon, but I really wanted to try one of these wines. Le Benedict is the “village” level wine from Wells Guthrie’s new venture. At this early date it shows a raspberry/strawberry fruit base, with an interesting herbal/pine/floral overtone. Texturally it’s quite smooth, with structure mostly from solid acids, and just a bit of back end tannin. In the end it’s a very enjoyable drink that hews more towards the lighter/delineated end of the scale, which is what I expected from Wells. I will wait a little while before broaching a single vineyard Pinot or the Syrah, but I certainly want to follow this new project as it moves forward.

Posted from CellarTracker

Posted from CellarTracker

2017 Alesia Anderson Valley Pinot Noir - From 375. Nice nose of red fruit and sandalwood. Good structure and acid with generous red fruit. Not a blockbuster, but quite nice and will drink well for several more years.

Terrific, good to see you all jumping in to get this started. It warms my soul to see people take this event to heart, especially in the shi##y year it has been for so many, in so many places. Thank you, truly. We’ll do some good here for Laura’s House, and remember, with my matching donor, as well as Mike Dildine’s match, every note is more than doubled in value.

I’ll add to the energy here and get going with a bottle. I’ve narrowed my Pinot Noir purchases down to really just a couple producers now, and Jamie Kutch is squarely in this small group. I simply love his wines, and I know the man: this guy cares about what he puts out, and he tries to keep innovating and making better wine vintage after vintage. For me, he succeeds, as if we think back to his earlier times, the wines were good, but the stuff coming out from recent vintages is really pretty spectacular. Low alcohol, no new oak, whole cluster adding aromatics and definition, and pure fruit flavors with a superb balance. That said, the 2018 Falstaff is right in that lane.

  • 2018 Kutch Pinot Noir Falstaff Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (11/20/2020)
    Haven’t had one of these in over a year so now is a good time to get one open. 12.5% ABV. This is going to be a crusher of a wine…merely open 15 mins and it’s already fanning out with flavor. The whole cluster is seemingly already integrating with the wine, and with just old barrels used here, the purity comes through. Strawberry, raspberry, mineral, red apple and a modest thread of acid emerging, too. I’m gonna enjoy this over the next couple days. Jamie Kutch is to me one of the real wizards with California California Pinot Noir. :heart_eyes::heart_eyes::muscle:

Posted from CellarTracker