2006 Radio-Coteau Pinot Noir Alberigi

The 2006 Pinot Noir Alberigi again displays the more muscular side of Pinot Noir, with a dark plum/ruby color and sweet notes of roasted meats, bouquet garni, truffle, and sweet cherry and plum. The wine is relatively heady, full, and like all of these, best drunk in its first 7-8 years. Radio-Coteau is another great success story, with proprietor Eric Sussman producing small-lot, handcrafted wines. Everything is fermented naturally, there are no enzymes, acidulations, very low SO2 is utilized, and the wines are bottled in-house, with neither fining nor filtration. This is always an exciting line-up of wines that remain fairly priced. While I always think of Sussman as a master with his red wine varietals, such as Pinot Noir, Syrah, and Zinfandel, he certainly impressed me with his two vintages of Chardonnay from the very cool-climate Savoy Vineyard of Anderson Valley. Tel. (707) 887-8335; Fax (801) 340-6041