Q on a gift from America: Siduri

I'll probably be opening this in the next few days but I was hoping to get some info beforehand. My Californian friend Wade dropped by Finland and he usually brings me a bottle of something US to drink. Usually it's something he has tried and he knows I'll like. But this time, knowing my interest in all things Sumerian, he bought a Pinot Noir from Siduri, but not the Californians, but one from Oregon: Arbre Vert Vineyard 2009. His reasoning for bringing it, despite not having tried it, was that it has very moderate alcohol (13%) and it's a grape I love from a region that I have really liked before when he's brought them (Willamette Valley) and there's Sumerian on the label. So all seems promising so far. But some things I read on the Internet about the producer are worrisome. So does anyone have experience with this particular wine?

Adam Lee (the winemaker of Siduri) posts on the wine Interwebz and is a proponent of vineyard characteristics in Pinot Noir, which is why he bottles so many different vineyard designates. Having said that, his wines aren't my style: too heavy and extracted for my Burgundophilic palate. An Oregonian vineyard might well be more in your (and my style) but you'll just have to open it to find out, Otto.

Mark Lipton

[David M. Bueker]

I like Siduri, but the wines are more than a bit rich.

[Robin Garr]

What Mark and David said. Adam gets around the wine sites - I'm sure he's posted here - and he's a nice guy with a good wine-maker's hand, but in my opinion it's a 'New World' hand. Not that there's anything the matter with that, but it's not personally my favorite style of Pinot.

Agree. As David says, they are "rich"---not jammy, but not by any means lean either. Have had only his California iterations, but if his style continues with the Willamette Valley, they'll probably be just a tad less on the rich side and a tiny bit more lean. But of course, that's only conjecture on my part.

And as all else have said, Adam is a great guy but definitely in the New World mode; he and Sonoma go well together. I've had some mighty tasty Siduri wines, but they're not in any way comparable to Burgundian Pinot Noir. Different creature. As it should be.

And apropros of...well, nothing, I suppose, but Adam's spouse makes some kick-ass good wines as well, under Novy.