This is a review of Cambria Pinot Noir Julia’s Vineyard 2004 which I drank over a period of three days while stuck on a fishing boat off the coast of Mexico. As a general rule I wouldn’t recommend drinking red wine on the open sea, sea sickness being only the first of many possible complications. Nevertheless there I was, about ninety miles west of Ensenada on open water, with twenty other people fishing for Dorado, Yellowtail and Tuna, and wishing I was home sipping wine out of a wine glass instead of a polypropylene coffee cup.
This wine, by Cambria Vineyards (Santa Maria Valley) is an excellent example of California Pinot Noir. Fairly big and very round, the wine tastes strongly of caramelized cherries and lingonberry jam, with the usual nose of cherries and spice. Acidity and sugars are in perfect balance, and the finish is long, with barely any wood or alcohol to spoil the ending. A tasty, evocative wine, better than any Merlot at any price point, in my humble opinion.
At first I thought this wine was overpriced ($28) but then I found it at Costco for ten dollars less. I would rank it alongside any other very good California Pinot such as the excellent entry level wine made by Au Bon Climat. As with most wines of this variety, they go well with almost anything. I experienced favorable results while eating king crab and seared yellowtail on the boat. You would not be able to do that with a Cabernet, I’m thinking. Given the choice, I’d prefer to enjoy this wine alongside roast chicken with herbed mashed potatoes, but hey, beggars can’t be choosers. In addition to being good out of the bottle, the wine held up well for three days stashed next to the condensing plate of our bunk room’s AC unit.
Cheers!
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