Fiddlehead Cellars Fiddlestix 728, 2004
~$40US, 100% Pinot Noir, Fiddlestix vineyard, Sta. Rita Hills, California
Medium transparent ruby. Big boisterous brambly nose with cherry pie filling. Soft and viscous in the front of the palate, moving towards a taught acidity and some serious spice. Not alcoholic spice - more like a black-pepper spice. Fabulous balance and length. Fruit-driven, and not terribly complex, but totally intriguing as it progressed in the palate from bold to hot. With food? = absolutely - but I wouldn’t try to pair it with anything too spicy, as it could fight.
It showed better and more integrated with softened spices on day 3. Sta. Rita Hills Pinots have really gotten me back into this grape, despite all my efforts to avoid the hype. To my mind, they show the importance of proportionality when creating wines with more forward fruit characteristics than the benchmark Burgundies.