Delicious! Darker fruit, so atypical for a Carneros Pinot. Plum, earth, a lovely clove flavor on the finish, some delicious funk. I love this wine (fourth bottle sampled). Happily, the 2009 vintage shows pretty nicely as well, and hopefully there is a good stock left! For comparison, Joe opened a 2009 Taslisman Adastra (Carneros) Pinot Noir. Joe is a big fan of Talisman Pinots. I am less enamored, but will say it is a really fun tasting room experience. One of those where if you are interested (and willing to spend), all kinds of magic mature bottles appear for sampling! Lovely old storefront in "downtown" Glen Ellen. Anyway...the 2009 Adastra shows feral sour cherry with quite a touch of smoke. There is definitely a "house style" here-I think they prefer a heavier toast. What stood out, though, was the silky texture. This is an elegant wine! I prefer the clove-and-plum-and-funk fruit of the Madonna Estate, but the Taslisman definitely showed that elegance often considered the exemplar of Pinosity!
A very enjoyable comparison!