As you can see below, Sam @Sam_WineTeacher and I have been busy tasting more of the BC Pinot Noirs that have been graciously donated by our BC wineries. We should have one more lot of wines to review and write about in a following article, after which the analysis of the wines’ aroma and flavour characteristics, and its association with soil and latitude will be undertaken by me, using a Geographic Information System, and the results shown in an article as well as an interactive map, as you may have seen in my BC Riesling Review from last year. Enjoy these reviews below, and consider buying a bottle or two to have with family and friends this summer.
JoieFarm Winery Pinot Noir 2013 – A deeper garnet in colour, but still translucent to the core. Medium intensity nose with aromas of raspberry, red cherry, red fruit, along with smokiness and hints of chocolate and some earthiness. With decanting the raspberry aroma (and flavour) did decrease and we picked up some volatile acidity notes on the nose and palate. The wine is dry, but quite round and soft, with a heavier mouth feel. Red cherries first, followed by ripe raspberries and then sour cherries and other red fruits. Hint of minerality on the palate. Medium length, finishing with medium tannins, tart cherries and a hint of cedar.
Rating: 
Haywire Pinot Noir, Okanagan Valley, Raised in Concrete 2013 – Pale garnet in colour. Medium plus intensity nose with red fruit and raspberry fruit aromas, together with raspberry leaf, smokiness sweet spices and earthiness. Dry, light body and mouth feel. Some roundness to the wine. Medium acidity, body and flavour intensity. Flavours of red cherries, raspberries, strawberries and other red fruits, with hints of violets and earthiness. Salty minerality behind these flavours. Medium to medium plus length, with fine tannins, smokiness, tart cranberries and some pepperiness. Would be great if the flavour lasted a bit longer on the finish.
Rating:
Burrowing Owl Estate Winery Pinot Noir 2014 – Medium plus intensity garnet in the glass, with a hint of bricking on the edges. Pronounced nose with aromas of black fruit, plums, black cherries, and red fruit flavours, along with some meatiness, and hints of sweet spice, flint, and red cherries. Dry, with medium plus body and tannins, and medium plus acidity and flavour intensity. Red and black fruits, raspberries and plum fruit flavours, together with nutmeg and other sweet spices, some pepperiness and hints of earth and oak. Full bodied, round with a heavier mouth feel. Medium plus length, with dark fruit flavours, some sweet spice, and warmth on the finish. With decanting this wine is even better. You have the ripe red and black fruit flavours, and a better integration of the aromas and flavours, and the warmth from the alcohol is better integrated.
Rating: 
A bigger, rounder, riper dark fruit flavoured Pinot Noir from BC. Decant for best results.
CedarCreek Platinum Block 2 Pinot Noir 2013 – Medium plus garnet in colour. Medium plus intensity nose with a mix of fruit and developing flavours. Black fruit, plum, and candied cherry fruit, mixed with smoke, earth, and hints of sweet spices, allspice, chocolate, earth and meatiness. Dry, with fuller body and flavour intensity. Very ripe, round and big mouthfeel. Silky. Some sweetness to this wine on the entry. Black fruit, plum and blackberry, with lesser amounts of raspberry, violets, black currant leaf, and chocolate on the palate. Medium plus length, that finishes with black fruit, and some tartness, together with firmer tannins. A California style Pinot Noir that you could age 3-7 more years.
Rating: –
SpierHead Winery Golden Retreat Vineyard Pinot Noir 2014. Deep garnet in colour with a little dullness possibly from being unfiltered. The wine is developing with medium plus intensity on the nose. Red fruit, black fruit, red cherry and candied cherry, as well as red plum fruit aromas. Also detected vanilla and light meatiness. With decanting the intensity on the nose slightly decreased and the meatiness disappeared. The wine is slightly off dry as it has some sweetness on the entry. Medium tannins, alcohol, and body but medium-plus intensity of flavour. It is round with a soft mouth feel. It has red fruit, black fruit, red cherry, and black cherry fruit flavours, as well as vanilla, a hint of perfume and light meatiness. With decanting we also detected some minerality. The wine has a medium plus length. The sweetness persists to the finish. It has firmer tannins on finish then the other Spearhead wine. Ripe red fruit on the finish along with vanilla. Quite a nice wine big fruit flavour. Could age 4 to 8 years.
Rating
Averill Creek Pinot Noir 2012. Deep garnet with a ruby tint. It has a medium minus intensity with developing aromas. It had a vegetable hint that dissipated quickly after opening. Light aroma overall; Red fruit and plum with hints of vanilla, perfume and chocolate. We also detected a whiff of acetone but that also dissipated with decanting. With decanting there was capsicum and ripe raspberry aromas. The wine is dry and fuller bodied with medium plus to pronounced flavour intensity, and medium plus acidity as well. Medium tannins and alcohol. Red fruit, raspberry, and red plum fruit flavours, as well as cloves, vanilla and sweet spices. Juicy red fruit with bright acidity on the palate. Medium plus length with pronounced mouthwatering acidity on the finish along with some pepperiness. Bright red fruit and a hint of oak.
Rating with decanting. I like this one a lot. Soft, fruity, and round. Aging three to five years potential.
SpierHead Winery Golden Retreat Vineyard Saddle Block Pinot Noir 2014. Medium garnet in colour that is translucent to the core. It has a medium minus intensity with red cherry red fruit and vanilla aromas. There may also be a hint of acetone. Also detected vanilla, sweet spices, cloves, and rose. With decanting we also detected some smoky notes on this wine. It is dry but has a sweet entry. A light mouth feel and is semi round. Medium acidity, tannins, alcohol, and body. Red cherries, candied cherries, strawberries, black currants, and red fruit flavours. There is a light vanilla and a hint of cloves. It has a medium plus length with some pepperiness and red fruit on the finish. Fine tannins. It’s ready to drink but can age three to five years.
Rating
Liquidity Winery Pinot Noir 2013. This wine is quite pale ruby red, leaning to a garnet colour. It has a very light intensity nose with developing aromas. Red and black fruit, red cherries together with vanilla, cinnamon, sweet spices and a hint of flint. With decanting the flint or smokiness became more evident. The wine is dry with a slight bit of sweetness on the entry. It has medium acidity, tannins, alcohol, body, and flavour intensity. It has medium mouth feel and roundness. Red fruit and red cherry flavours together with raspberry and red cherry. Vanilla, cloves and sweet spice. There is some flintiness that shows up on the mid palate but it disappears with decanting. The raspberry flavor also decreases with decanting. There is also a light pepperiness that starts on the mid palate. The wine has a medium plus length with mouth watering acidity leading to making the finish astringent. Nutmeg and red cherry flavours. Medium tannins. The pepperiness lingers on the finish. Could age 2 years.
Rating 
– . A very light Pinot Noir.
Evolve Pinot Noir 2014. Deep garnet in colour. Medium intensity nose with developing aromas. Quite smoky aroma with subdued fruit on the nose. Aromas of red fruit and red cherry. You also get charcoal meatiness and toast, pepper and hints of perfume and earth. The wine becomes much less smoky with decanting. On the palate the wine is dry with medium acidity, alcohol, body, and flavour intensity. It has medium plus drying tannins and match stick flavour. You get mostly smoke and texture with little fruit upon first opening. There are fruit flavours of red fruit, red cherry, and a hint of strawberry. With decanting the matchstick disappears and you get more charcoal as well as some perfume. The wine has very firm tannins from the mid palate to finish.
Rating Decant this wine to reduce the smokiness and make the fruit come forward.
Blue Grouse Estate Pinot Noir 2014. Deep ruby and garnet in colour but still translucent. Pronounced aromas of very ripe raspberries, cherries, and plums. Very aromatic. You also get a combination of ripe apples and mintiness on the nose. Also vanilla, nutmeg, cedar and sweet spices. With decanting you then also get blueberry on the nose. The wine is dry with above-average acidity, medium tannins and alcohol, and above average body and overall flavour intensity. Juicy, ripe red and black fruits. Also vanilla, nutmeg, cedar and sweet spices. With decanting you then also get blueberry on the nose. The wine is dry with above average acidity, medium tannins and alcohol, and above average body and flavour intensity. Round mouth feel. Juicy ripe red and black fruits, raspberry, sour red cherry, black cherry, and plum. There is also vanilla and a hint of cedar. With decanting you also get some smokey notes. This wine has a medium plus length with mouth watering acidity. Medium plus tannins become firmer towards to finish. Flavours of a red cherries and some cedar on finish. This wine could age another 4 to 5 years.
Rating A very nice, big, fruit forward Pinot Noir.
Bailie Grohman Pinot Noir 2013. This wine is quite deep in colour, garnet, but still has some translucency. It has medium intensity on the nose; developing aromas of earth and meatiness. Flavours of ripe red cherries and raspberries, red fruits and red currants. It is dry with medium acidity, tannins, alcohol, and medium plus body and flavour intensity. It is fairly ripe and round with a smooth mouth feel. Also detected a streak of minerality in this wine. Flavors include red fruit, ripe raspberries, and red cherries. There also a light hint of vanilla in the background, some cloves, smokiness, and sweet spice. Within decanting the wine became rounder and softer and also we were able to detect some cedar notes. The wine has medium plus length and mouth-watering acidity. Medium tannins. The fruit flavour falls off fairly quick leaving you with the acidity and tannins. Riper, dark red fruits on the finish.
Rating
Volcanic Hills Pinot Noir 2011. Between pale and medium garnet in colour, it is translucent to the core with a hint of bricking on the rim. It has medium plus aromatic intensity. It has a hint of acetone that does continue with decanting. Aromas of red fruit, blackberry, black and red cherry. There is also some perfume, rose, sweet spice, white pepper, and light vanilla. It is dry with very bright acidity, and some acetone, on the palate. Medium tannins, alcohol, and body. The wine has a more angular, less round mouth feel. There are flavours of red fruit and red cherries, along with hints of vanilla, oak, sweet spices, and rose. Medium plus length, with mouth watering acidity, some bitterness, red cherries, and very tart red fruit on the finish.
Rating –
