Grocery Outlet, $7.99. We believe this should be a $30 bottle and categorically recommend. Tasted 5/29/22. 87/100.
It is fitting that our first wine reviewed on Worthy Wine should be everything we look for. An overlooked gem, accessible, mercurial, with complexity and depth to explore. Punching well above its price point today.
Nose: Strong. We are presented with loamy, earthy notes and that feeling I can only describe from a wine cellar – the scent of wine mixing with oxygen for the first time. There is also a pungent alcohol smell that cuts through, it is likely that this prevented this bottle from selling well when it was first released – but we have the benefit of an extra 8 years of cellaring in 2022 to mellow this out.
Color: an opaque burgundy. Although in a wine glass we can see through it, so it’s passed through a 20 micrometer filter rather than simply through the ‘bug catcher’ at bottling.
Every good wine should tell a story. Engaging beginning, climax in the middle, and denouement that leaves one satisfied.
Sip start: balanced spice, notes of cherry, plum and blackberry.
Sip middle: aerates nicely, smooth. With Pinot Noir we look for earthiness, spice, and a complex mouth sensation and this really shines in Pinot Noirs in the $55 price point and above.
Sip end: finish leaves something to be desired, but it’s not a bad feeling, just a lack or emptiness where we find solace or conclusion in other wines. In reality, we just want to drink more and we don’t expect a $7.99 wine to deliver everything.
AVA – American Viticultural Association
The grapes were grown in the Sonoma Coast AVA which is on the western side of Sonoma County. This is one of the prime regions for growing Pinot Noir. The cool marine fog in summer keeps the vines cooler than the heat other varietals receive. So sugar is lower and not the point of Pinot Noir – Pinot Noir is commonly fermented with grape skins, as well as leaves and stems to achieve the complex earthiness and spice we strive to find in good pinots. Vinted and bottled in Napa, CA.
Conclusion:
Garnet has done a reasonable job at a Pinot Noir I would expect to find at a $30 price point – currently on sale at $7.99. This is a very drinkable wine and also very approachable for readers looking for a reasonably-priced, quality expression of Pinot Noir as a good introduction to the varietal. We recommend decanting or letting aerate for 10 minutes or so after pouring into the glass to blow off the excess alcohol fumes. We categorically recommend the Garnet Vineyards 2014 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir and will be returning to the store for more until supplies run out. 89/100.