WTN: Hey Howie; Nice Pinot Noir!!

I finally opened the 2008 Pinot Noir that Howie Hart send me this past Spring. Consumed with prok loin rubed with coriander and sweet corn, it was a wonderful match. This Pinot Noir was very light ruby with high transparency and some bricking at the edge. The nose and palate were of strawberry and an herbal element, maybe rubarb, high viscosity and a slight spritzy acidity that was very appealing. There is enough acidity here to let this wine rest for at least several years but was very enjoyable now. I would guess %13.3 abv give or take 0.2 %. The paleness of color and the high viscosity were the surprises for me but all together this wine was very enjoyable and food-friendly. Thanks Howie for including this wine with the sparkler you sent me. What is the actual abv for this wine?

Glad you liked it Jim. I was not able to get much color extraction from the grapes, but I liked the way it turned out. The grapes came in at 21 Brix and I made no adjustment for the sparkler, but did bump the Brix to 23 for the still wine, using cane sugar. I don't have the ability to test for alcohol, but if one uses 0.58 X brix to determine potential alcohol, the result is 13.34 abv, so your guess is as good as my calculation.

Do you want your bottle back? I could give it to you on the 12th at MoCool.

That's all right. I have plenty of bottles. Thanks.