Tasting Notes from Winemaker Byron Kosuge
2006 Tobiano Pinot Noir
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950 cases
14.5%
Fall 2007
$20/bottle
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I like to say that in winemaking, you only have one chance per year to get it right. So we had had only three chances before the 2006 vintage to figure out what we were doing with the Pinot Noir grapes from our Casablanca vineyard. I would like to think we were quick learners on this one, but of course Mother Nature had a lot to do with it. So did having our own winery, which was completed just before (and a little bit during) the 2006 vintage. This meant for the first time we could do exactly as we pleased with the grapes.
Tobiano Pinot Noir was the result of two things—first, our desire to put only the very top wines into the Alazan bottling, thereby leaving us with a fair amount of good wine without a home eachyear, and second, our desire to have an affordably priced, high-quality wine that normal folks like me (i.e., not wealthy) could afford to drink often.
The 2006 Tobiano Pinot is the best Tobiano we have made to date. It has forward, vibrant fruit and plenty of character. Cherry, spice, and the usual Pinot Noir descriptors apply, with a light touch of oak—juicy and mouth-filling on the palate. Like previous Tobiano Pinots, this is not necessarily a wine to contemplate (although I think it’s good enough to contemplate briefly before quaffing), but rather a wine of pleasure.
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