I bought a few different 2013’s and really liked them. Bought some 2014’s and they were good but more variable. Have had two 2015’s so far, Campbell Ranch and Harmony Lane, both were disappointing lacking structure and concentration.
Tom
I have personally switched to buying almost exclusively from Oregon for domestic pinot. I think Anthill, Rhys, Copain, and Arcadian (there are some more) were revolutionary in picking grapes with lower ripeness, and Allen Meadows took notice giving them high scores. As prices increased with those scores, I have been finding almost all pinot from Oregon built on that philosophy rather than the exception–and at mostly lower prices. I still buy Arcadian when I see it–but have stopped buying both Anthill and Rhys.
My Anthill’s were from after '08, specifically most from '09-'12. As others have said, there is just so much of this wine one can buy and then it’s enough, true of Rhys and Kutch, too, imho. I own the most Rhys and have kept all of it, unlike the other two, some of which I have traded or contributed to charity or sold. Seems true of almost all wine–collect some and then move on to what else is out there. It doesn’t reflect on the wines themselves, and maybe others are different, but I don’t think I am out for a twenty year vertical of pretty much any wine I can afford.
Incorrect. They had a wine in which every single bottle had a pronounced flaw, and didn’t disclose it when selling the wine.
There is a lot of good Pinot on the market in the $40-50 price range. And their style may not be appeal to a large number of buyers. And that results in a reduced presence on the BB.
Yup. If they doubled that price, regard for their wines would increase here.
Dealt with the 2008’s. When I asked they said everyone has different tastes, and maybe they weren’t for me rather than own the issue. They proceeded to dump all the wine on wine bid a few months after folks started saying something. Kind of surprised they’re still around after that poor showing.
I bought the 2011 and 2012 vintages. At best, meh, at worst, they really sucked. One bottle left - saving in the name of science.
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2012 Anthill Farms Pinot Noir Campbell Ranch Vineyard - USA, California, Sonoma County, Sonoma Coast (8/6/2017)
I’ve been aging several 2012 AF PNs offsite hoping for good things. Unfortunately, this bottle was awful. A little funk on the nose and then orange peel with just a weird disjointed taste. Very disappointed - we struggled to empty the bottle with our guests. Hoping things will improve with our other bottles. (80 pts.)
Posted from CellarTracker
Hard to reconcile these two statements.
Domestic Pinot Noir is the second biggest category volume wise in the country outside of Cabernet at retail.
Consider the source here…
Stopped buying, but the 2013 Abbey Harris was one of the best CA PN I’ve had in a long time
Not at all. Anthill was not the only winery where I ended up with smoky wines.
The first statement reads as if people shouldn’t carp about smoke tainted wines. The second statement suggests that you personally carped about the smoke tainted wines enough that you received a solution that, if implemented for everyone, wouldn’t be economically viable for the winery.
I was an early buyer of the wines but got burned with the 2008 Anderson Valley Pinot. Smoke taint was quite significant. I contacted the winery and the response was basically a shrug. The whole experience left a bad taste in my mouth. Or perhaps that was the wine.
I stopped buying for a short while but still purchase now and again.
I did not like the way they handled the 2008s but understand they may have not fully appreciated the long term importance of customer service. I buy occassionally and in smaller quanties. The wines can be quite good and many are fairly priced.
In response to the question presented by the OP, I think the board has matured to an extent that it is no longer filled with posts about the latest release of xyz and the auto response to back up the truck, or how they bought a pallet, which sometimes was written ‘palate’ and 18 people followed, all chiming in to correct the poster.
Did I just say this board has matured?
The Peters Syrah is a house favorite for us, but we are only occasional buyers of Anthill overall.
I will echo, that for me, that their syrahs are the highlight. Wonderful wines at great prices.
The pinots are OK plus for me, and I haven’t found they age particularly well.
I’ve stopped buying, but I’ve stopped buying almost all lists for a while.
Exactly. I do think the culture of this Board has changed. People seem to post less, along with a small subset that thrive on drama and stirring issues for attention (which mirrors the larger culture in the US, IMO). I still continue to post notes but I won’t come on here as much as I used to and trumpet the next offer. Many of us know when the next offer is, what’s in it and we’ve settled into buying what we like and supporting these producers.
As for Anthill, I no longer buy it. Again, as with some have mentioned, I too have culled my lists down to a small few that I buy regularly and across the range, and to adopt the stupid term, from ‘board darlings’.
My wife & I recently did a tasting with Anthony. I thought the Pinots were pretty good but pricey for what they were. On the other hand, I think the Syrahs are a good value.