2005 Chasseur Chardonnay Lorenzo Russian River Valley 54.99

When Wine Spectator critic James Laube went hunting for great California Pinot Noir he headed to the Sonoma Coast and the Russian River. Smart guy; it’s one of those cool corners of the west coast in the running for the Great American Burgundy. One winery he liked a lot is Chasseur. Smart again.

We agree. Bill Hunter, the soul in charge, has isolated the best vineyards and treats the grapes with very tender hands trained on Rombauer, Dutton and Bonny Doon. So does Parker’s 94 for a chard we love: “Readers seeking Chablis-styled California white should check out the 2005 Chardonnay Lorenzo Vineyard. Sensational notes of lemon, citrus blossoms, wet stones, orange rind, and guava as well as an unmistakable minerality are followed by a wine of great ripeness, purity, and full-bodied power.”

That’s quality to shoot for and at $54.99, a bullseye.

2008 Ken Wright Pinot Noir Freedom Hill Vineyard $44.99

The difficult nature of pinot noir vines and grapes is a holy grail with many trails in the U.S. that attracts true believers and hardy pioneers. Ken Wright is both, and he has found a convincing answer in Oregon that any pinot lover should explore.

Wright is a Kentuckian who followed his wine love to California and settled on pinot noir in Oregon in 1986. He founded his own winery in ’94 to focus on the very best single vineyards, he found at least a dozen.

But the best places for pinot noir are those that don’t have comely weather every year. Vintage is key.

Then comes 2008.

Maybe Oregon’s best ever, according to Shawn Reynolds, our West-Coast intelligence officer at B-21. He quotes Wright as saying “You can talk to folks…” , “[who] never saw in their lifetime a nicer fall.” Temps never got over 90; cool summer and ensuing late harvest led to bright acidity, low alcohol and no rains.

Wazzat mean for the wine? Superb concentration of juicy, fruit flavors across the spectrum; harmony, silky textures, vibrant acidity, and streaks of minerality.

Great vineyard plus great vintage plus great vintner.

How great? Everything Ken Wright made in 2007 was 90 and above. The 2008s we have — ten single vineyards — are so fresh no one’s scored them yet. Get in on a great thing very early.

For $44.99, you can be a pioneer too.

Click here to see all 2008 Ken Wright Pinot Noir in stock.

- Chris Sherman, The Blogging Nibbler

What else can you say about a guy who climbed over the fences one night after pruning at La Tache, Domaine Romanee Conti, collected the cuttings, went back to his room, snipped off the buds, and smuggled them out of the country in his briefs.

When customs questioned the bulge, he says he responded “I‘m Italian. Wanna check?”

Today sniffer dogs and full-body scans could have checked, but those buds went on to start the most prestigious pinot vineyards in the Central Coast, sought out by Peter Michael, Siduri, Roar, Patz & Hall, and Testarossa. He can’t call them DRC clones but cracks “’They can’t call theirs Pisoni clones.”

2009 Rose of Pinot Noir Juicy Lucy $18.99

If wine is made in the vineyard, it’s Pinsoni cultivation as well as the clones. Crews go through ten or twelve times pulling leaves. It produces less than 2.5 tons of grapes per acre and once crushed, the juice is bled to concentrate the flavor more.

The result: striking, intense flavors and very approachable — but no softie.

The 2008 Lucia from Garys Vineyard, which is actually two Garys, Pisoni and Farrell ($47.99) is lush and rich with fruit, a strong spine of acidity, and most distinguished by its spice of pepper clove and sandalwood.

Burgundy’s no match at the price and consistency year-on and year-out. However all is not classic pinot noir. That first press bled in the saignee process  is a grand rose called Lucy ($18.99), which is remarkably broad not thin or tart. It’s full of peaches, citrus and light dusting of spice. With a silky feel and refreshing minerality. So good, you won’t call it rosé.

The 2008 Pisoni Chardonnay ($37.99) doesn’t get as much attention as the pinots but it should. Lots of juicy tropical flavors with cream and caramel, complex and rich enough to be a grand cru.

- Chris Sherman, The Blogging Nibbler

Sequana Pinot Noir Sundawg Ridge - 54.99

I had the opportunity to taste the 2007 Sequana Pinot Noir Sundawg Ridge last night and it was fantastic. The bottle I sampled was about 6 hours old, but didn’t seem to have diminished in the least. If it had, the prospect of trying a fresh bottle is pretty compelling. We secured the remaining 6 cases from the supplier and will shoot an email offer shortly.

~Shawn

“Light plum in color, looks might deceive you into thinking this wine is thin, but thin it is not. Elegant, dry, incredibly smooth, and lush with soft tannins this estate-grown and bottled, single-vineyard designate drips with deep, red fruit. It’s one of the best American Pinots I’ve had yet. Absolutely brilliant…” 95 points, Shawn Reynolds, B-21

“This distinctive Pinot Noir…is totally dry and silky and firm in acidity, yet soft in fine tannins. You might call it noble. It’s eruptive in cherries, sweet smoky bacon, raspberry granola and oaky sandalwood. Gorgeous, seductive and brilliant, a truly great Pinot Noir that’s impeccable now. ” - Steve Heimoff, 97 Points | The Wine Enthusiast

From Mr. Gianfranco Magazzini.

Sir, I am a regular reader of Lunch with the FT and always find it interesting except for something that is in my experience never there – a bottle of wine.

To my recollection the only beverages present are: San Pellegrino, Coca-Cola and, even worse, Diet Coke, green tea, herbal tea (which I assume is taken before going to bed … ) or a glass of house wine. Now tell me how you can enjoy lunch in such circumstances?

Mr. Magazzini volunteered to buy wine for any future lunches if the interviewer would call him in Montecatini Terme in Chianti and read him the wine list. Other readers chimed in blaming the sad effects of bubblegum palates, frugality and temperance.

Guess who came to the rescue?  U2.  Honest.

Paul McGuinness the band’s manager told the FT over his lunch that, “I figured out bad wine costs the same as good wine, so why not learn about it?”  He taught the lads as well.

So McGuinness’ last lunch at The Spotted Pig, Mario Batali’s gastropub in New York, included Spanish ham, pumpkin, chowder and gnudi dumplings, and a bottle of Oregon Pinot Noir (plus a bottle of still water, a double espresso and a tea).  Lunch with U2.

2006 Lemelson Pinot Noir Thea's Selection ($24.99)

Don’t know if a bottle of wine will solve the world’s problems, but I’ll vote with U2 and the gentleman from Chianti.

For a Willamette Valley Pinot, I’ll take Foxy Rock 2006, made by Clearwater’s own Burgundy-loving Bob Heileman

 ($24.99) or any of 2006 Lemelsons ($24.99 to $59.99).  For the Tuscan, the 2005 Nipozzano Rufina Reserva from Frescobaldi is a steal ($17.99).

Have a glass, it’s lunch time somewhere.