Block 8 Bien Nacido Vineyard Pinot Noir

Fact sheet

Type

Red

Grape

Pinot Noir

Country

United States

Region

Santa Maria Valley · Central Coast

Appellation

Santa Maria Valley

Body

medium

Acidity

high

Tannin

medium

Sweetness

dry

Rated vintages

• 201596 pts

  This block-designate wine shows flamboyant aromas of red cherry, cola, purple flowers and light caramel. The palate offers an amazingly cohesive and zesty experience, combining piquant cranberry and tart raspberry with slate-driven minerality and a persistent woody spice. The te…

• 201495 pts

  Hearty plum, deep rose petal, earthy juniper, a touch of charcoal and crushed graphite aromas show strongly on the nose of this bottling from a tiny block in this historic vineyard. The palate packs an awesome combination of tension, energy and power, like a clenched fist in a s…

• 201394 pts

  Cinnamon spice and pomegranate fruit give a soft touch to minerally driven aromas of black slate and wet cement on the nose of this block-designated (and trademarked!) wine. The wine's tannic grip and tartness are apparent on the texturally distinct palate before raspberry, hibi…

• 201292 pts

  One of Foxen's block designates from the historic property, this offers scents of purple flowers, black soil and sharp dill. It's quite smooth once sipped and not very complicated, but with fresh raspberry and brown spice.

• 201192 pts

  There's a severity of acids and tannins that limits this Pinot's immediate enjoyment. It feels tight and hard, despite a core of black and red cherries and the sweetness of toasty oak. All indications point to the cellar. Give it 6–7 years, and it could be going strong well afte…

• 201092 pts

  This is a big, ripe, full-bodied Pinot Noir—as big as the variety gets in California. But it never loses balance, by virtue of the brisk acids, silkiness and dry finish. This wine always impresses for its sheer, Incredible Hulk volume. Drink now–2015.

• 200992 pts

  Exceptionally rich, a Pinot Noir that tastes dramatic from the get go. It's full-bodied, dry and velvety, with complex flavors of berries, pomegranates, cherries, cola, currants, mushrooms and spices. The firm tannins and crisp acids suggest ageability over the next six years.

• 200887 pts

  A good wine, with some noble features such as perfect tannins and wonderfully fresh acidity. But, good as it is, there's something off in the taste. Too jammy, too fruity, with a candied, raspberry granola sweetness, lacking depth and the brooding, earthy layers you want in a Pi…