PINOT NOIR WINE REVIEWS
2008 Bella Sonoma Pinot Noir
2008 Bella Luna Pinot Noir
2008 Two Vineyard Blend Pinot Noir
2007 Bella Luna Pinot Noir
2007 Leepin Pinot Noir
2006 Bella Luna Pinot Noir
2006 Leepin Pinot Noir
2006 Priscilla Pinot Noir
REVIEWS: 2008 BELLA SONOMA PINOT NOIR
Score: 91
This Pinot is made in a lighter style, but it’s complex and interesting. It’s marked by dryness and acidic crispness. The raspberry, cola and persimmon flavors are enriched with a touch of sweet, smoky oak. Seems best now, but it could surprise over the next six years.
Wine Enthusiast (6/1/2011)
Score: 91
Medium ruby color; subtle cherry and raspberry aromas; rich, ripe cherry flavors with some spice and light oak; good structure and balance; long finish. A subtle, lighter styled Pinot with plenty of flavor and aromas. Ready to drink.
The Pinot Report (Issue 72)
Score: 88
While showing a touch of the woodsy spice that marks both of its siblings, this wine gets the nod as being the deepest and best filled of the lot. Its keenly defined, ripe-cherry fruit stays the course through to a lengthy finish, and, if arguably still a bit ragged at the end, it will be helped by a few years of aging.
Connoisseurs Guide to Wine (6/2011)
REVIEWS: 2008 BELLA LUNA PINOT NOIR
Score: 93
Medium-deep ruby color; rich, complex, spicy red cherry aromas; complex, rich raspberry and cherry flavors with some earthy notes; sweet oak; good structure and balance; long finish. Complex Pinot with really nice aromatics -- give this some air before you drink it.
Pinot Report (Issue 72)
Score: 91
Give this polished Pinot an hour or two of decanting and serve it now with a good steak, or try prosciutto-wrapped dates for an exotic appetizer. It’s dry, rich and spicy, with ripe cherry, red currant, cola and bacon flavors, edged with sweet, smoky sandalwood.
Wine Enthusiast (6/1/2011)
REVIEWS: 2008 TWO VINEYARD BLEND PINOT NOIR
Score: 90
Medium ruby color; bright, raspberry, cherry aromas with some spice notes; ripe, bright cherry flavors with spice, cola and earthy notes; good structure and balance; long finish. Bright and spicy, this Pinot is great for lighter fare.
The Pinot Report (Issue 72)
Score: 88
Churchill makes Pinots in a lighter-bodied style, but they’re still elegant and complex. This translucent wine is silky in the mouth, and the raspberry, cherry, and cola flavors are enhanced with brisk acidity.
Wine Enthusiast (6/1/2011)
REVIEWS: 2007 BELLA LUNA PINOT NOIR
Score: 93
Medium ruby color; rich, deep cherry and spice aromas; deep, rich red cherry and raspberry flavors with spice and sweet oak notes; good structure and balance; long finish. Deep and rich Pinot with very nice fruit.
The Pinot Report
Score: 90
Ripe cherries and toasty oak hinting at a graham cracker richness come with background notes of berries and candied violets in this bottling's attractive aromas. Supple on the palate and a touch frontal in its flavors, the wine is juicy and easy to taste with lots of sweet cherry notes as its central theme. Firming acidity tightens its finish somewhat and allows it to serve now or to be aged for a few years.
Connoisseur's Guide to Wine 2/10
REVIEWS: 2007 LEEPIN PINOT NOIR
Score: 92
Medium-deep ruby color; deep, earthy, black cherry aromas with forest floor notes; deep, complex black cherry fruit with earthy notes, sweet oak, good structure and balance; long finish. Earthy and complex, this Pinot has some great cool-climate fruit and the right amount of forest floor notes.
The Pinot Report
Score: 91
Very precisely focused, bright and energetic aromas of cherries, both red and black, along with notes of creamy oak and a mild hint of candied fruits make the early going here, and the wine's medium-full-bodied, balanced qualities and velvety suggestions on the palate follow right in stride. A bit of nervy acidity adds its own tangy element at the finish, but this wine will serve well now with the meaty fishes or lighter meat preparations yet has all the parts in place for a few years of aging.
Connoisseur's Guide to Wine 2/10
REVIEWS: 2006 BELLA LUNA PINOT NOIR
Score: 92
Medium ruby color; rich aromas of cherry, spice and rose petals; bright and rich cherry flavors with spice and herb notes; silky texture; sweet oak; good structure and balance; long finish. Rich and bright, this Pinot opens up nicely in the glass.
Pinot Report 12/30/08
Score: 91
While attractive and fairly well-focused, this wine is a little low-keyed in the nose, but it ups the ante in terms of richness and depth once in the mouth. It is never a big wine, but it is well-balanced one and its racy flavors are charged with loads of pretty young fruit that seem to build and gain in substance. Exceptionally long, neatly polished and a sheer joy to drink, it will be hard to resist in the near term even if capable of growing for a few years.
Connoisseur's Guide to Wine 10/08
Score: 87
Medium-bodied yet offering lots of cherry, raspberry and wild berry flavors that are pure and persistent
James Laube, Wine Spectator Magazine
REVIEWS: 2006 LEEPIN PINOT NOIR
Gold Medal Winner
Sonoma County Harvest Festival
Score: 91
Medium ruby color; deep, spicy aromas of cinnamon with black cherry notes; deep, complex core of black cherry fruit, spicy and earthy notes, sweet oak, good structure and balance; long finish. Deep and rich, this Pinot is a terrific mouthful of earthy, spicy complexity.
Pinot Report 12/30/08
Score: 87
Rich, root-beer-like spice in the nose immediate separates this one from its siblings, and, unlike its mates, it draws up just a bit short at the finish. Fairly firm and showing acidy angles and edges just now, it has enough well-defined fruit at its heart to invite a few years of comfortable keeping.
Connoisseur's Guide to Wine 10/08
Score: 87
Offers a touch of racy sour cherry and wild berry. Zesty, vibrant and medium-bodied, this ends with a citrusy edge that's mouthwatering.
James Laube, Wine Spectator Magazine
REVIEWS: 2006 PRISCILLA PINOT NOIR
Silver Medal Winner
Sonoma County Harvest Festival
Score: 92
Medium ruby color; bright, spicy aromas of clove and cinnamon with some berry notes; complex, big and rich red cherry and raspberry fruit flavor with lots of spice and sweet oak; silky texture; good structure and balance; long finish. Bright and spicy Pinot with flavors that just go on and on.
Pinot Report 12/30/08
Score: 91
Very much cut from the same cloth as its finesseful partner from the Bella Luna Vineyard, this sleek, well-ripened Pinot starts out on the slightly delicate side and builds as its crosses the palate. Highlighted with hints of sweet cream and fresh toast and tenaciously fruity in character, it finishes on a bright, mildly acidy, tart-cherry note that bids one to wait for a couple of years.
Connoisseur's Guide to Wine 10/08
Score: 86
Offers modest richness and complexity, with spice, floral, wild berry and black cherry flavors that are pure and lively.
James Laube, Wine Spectator Magazine