Wine Number 11:

2005 Vital Vineyards Pinot Noir:

Ah yes, Pinot Noir. This grape's inclusion in the movie Sideways altered its fate and the fate of merlot for a long long time. Instantly merlot becomes a subpar grape not fit for consumption. The filmmaker's joke? The wine that Paul Giamatti's character has been saving and finally pops and enjoys in the diner is a wine that has merlot in it.

Mr. Giamatti had one part correct, though... Pinot Noir is a tough grape to grow. You only really notice this because everyone tries to grow it... and then they bottle subpar wines because they sell like hotcakes. The loser? Wine drinkers like myself, who are trying to expand their palates and try different things. The expensive rock-your-world stuff isn't available to me... especially when I'm not even sure whether or not I'll even like the thing. My expensive purchases are reserved to Italians or Ports I'm familiar with and know are worth the gamble

Anyway, the Vital Pinot is definitely interesting, and better than many other Pinots I've tried. At first I thought it had strong vegetal characteristics, and it reminded me of asparagus, different, but not at all unpleasant. The color was light, which according to Gary Vaynerchuck is a good thing in Pinot Noirs and I agree. [No blends for massive flavor and color.] This wine was different and not a flavorful explosion. Oregon Pinots are expensive and at $20 this was certainly no steal. On the second day there is much more fruit... so this will probably do well with some time in a cellar.

Overall, for people who routinely buy wines for dinner at $20 I think it's worth the shot. As far as my quest goes... I got another state and grape in one shot.

Wine Count: 11; State Count: 4; Grape Count: 11.