Washington Square Park is one of my favorite spots in New York. Located in the heart of Greenwich Village it has long been a haven for poets, painters, musicians, and even dancers. Strolling through on a lazy saturday afternoon you are likely to find various artists diligently pursuing the perfection of their craft. I love the artistic community and wish there were more places with the same attitude of shared creativity.
Music, Food, Wine, Literature, Art, God, and Family are the passions in my life and while I enjoy them all at different times and in different ways they are all intrinsically interconnected and I often enjoy more than one, if not all, of them together. It is no wonder to me that after enjoying an impromptu jazz session in Washington Square Park, I would wander into a random wine shop and stumble upon this Longoria 2000 Bien Nacido Pinot Noir from the Santa Maria Valley.
Richard Longoria has been making wine for over 30 years. He established the Longoria label in 1982 and has since been focused on crafting artisinal, soulful wines from various vineyard sites around Santa Barbara County. Over the years he has become one of the most respected winemakers in the area. One of the pioneers in Santa Barbara, he has, along with Jim Clendenen and Richard Sanford, helped to establish this area as one of the premier winemaking regions in California. I have not yet had the opportunity to meet Rick, but look forward to meeting with him and tasting his current wines in the near future. Check back for more on this great winery.
For now I will focus on this beautiful 2000 Bien Nacido Pinot Noir. The fruit for this wine was harvested on September 15, 2000, from the N block, one of the oldest in the Bien Nacido Vineyard. According to Rick this vintage was marked by a hot beginning to September which attributed to the early harvest date. The fruit came in with a Brix of 23.8 degrees, and although I am not sure exactly what the finished alcohol is, I would guess somewhere between 13.5 and 14 percent.
The nose was dominated by forest floor and barnyard aroma's with just a hint of the beautiful fruit that was soon to follow on the palate. As I took the first little bit into my mouth I let it coat the palate for a good 30 seconds. With my eyes closed I tried to listen and hear exactly what this wine was saying. The fruit was amazing and the wine preformed a complete 180 degree turn from what I had experienced in the nose. The forest floor was now just a nice accent to the beautiful, complex fruit that still possessed a youthful exuberance. The balance was impeccable and the acidic backbone provided an almost effervescent sensation that I am sure also contributed to the wines youthfulness.
For an 8 year old Pinot Noir from California this baby has the stuff to keep evolving gracefully for at least the next 10 years. I am sure that more of the forest floor will evolve, and wish that I could have picked up a case to take home with me to track the evolution of this wine over the next 10 years. I kept enjoying this bottle for a good 2 hours with my brother and we savored every taste, not wanting the experience to end. What a great surprise to find this bottle in a random wine shop in New York. Just goes to show what you might find if you simply enjoy life and art.
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