Center of Effort, New Wines from Winemakers Nathan Carlson and Mike Sinor…

What fun it is to have a restaurant and get to really know a particular wine over a few weeks.  The past two weeks I have spent a lot of time with Edna Valley newcomer Center of Effort, Pinot Noir, 2008 from winemakers Mike Sinor and Nathan Carlson.

I have known Mike Sinor for a little while as we having hosted a few dinners at Trelio for both his Sinor LaVallee label and daytime work at Ancient Peaks Winery.  I have been a fan of his work since his breakout at Domain Alfred back in the early 2000′s.  Obviously a gifted Pinot Noir craftsman, as well as an all around good guy.   In addition having heard good of Nathan Carlson (but only recently meeting him), I went out on a limb and purchased all of the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from this new project that my distributor would allow.

At first taste I knew we made a good decision with these wines. At its first showing here at Trelio during our bi-annual Massive Wine Tasting, Center of Effort performed, the Chardonnay moved a case or so and the Pinot was solid in its price range showing very well next to wines from Kosta Browne, B. Kosuge, Parr Selection, Samsara, Drew and Ketcham Estate.  Second showing, I was just playing around at our Pinot Noir Brown Bag Dinner this week and decided to sneak it into the tasting.  Sure enough the wine won the 20 person tasting with 43pts out of 60pts (that is pretty damn good for one of these dinners) and started a buying spree that has sold us out (other than the three bottles I hid).

What makes this wine so compelling?  For the Non-Pinofile it carries a lot of fruit very elegantly.  The core is mostly red and black cherry with tinges of darker berry mingled in, but it is not a typical Central Coast fruit bomb.  A nice dark spice character, herbal tea leaf and sweet mushroom note back up the fruit and really keeps the nose in check.  The oak is definitely noticeable and would be attractive to those that love wines that show sweet toasty styling.  The mouth comes across slightly darker than the nose expressing a brambly blackberry character and a darker-more anise flavor in the spice.  The texture is already weighty and plush for a 2008 with a very good chance that it will silken up over the next two years in bottle.  Appealing structure is  with a slight advantage to the tannin that will certainly resolve in a year or two only adding to the enjoyment of the wine between 2011 and 2013.

With a price point just shy of $40 a bottle, Center of Effort is a great wine that holds its own with the legendary Talley’s and early work of Domain Alfred.

Advertisement