2013 Alfaro Family Vineyards, Pinot Noir, Lindsay Paige Vineyard, Santa Cruz Mountains.
The beautifully detailed and rich Lindsay Paige Estate Pinot from Alfaro is the most flamboyant and full bodied of his set of gorgeous 2013 vintage Pinot Noirs, and maybe will be the longest lived, it certainly looks set to please for many years to come. The last to be released the Alfaro Lindsay Paige is the flagship or signature wine of Richard Alfaro’s lineup, it highlights the estate’s best features which includes deep fruit intensity, good cool climate acidity, color and silken like tannins, the terroir here is similar in flavor profile to Oregon in many ways, but with a more coastal influence which is natural being that Corralitos is not much more than 4 or 5 miles from the Ocean and the cold Monterey Bay. The 2013 Lindsay Paige saw the most time in barrel at 17 months, and it saw the highest percentage of new wood, at about 42% of medium/hight toast French which kisses the wine with smoky vanilla, but remarkably has not over shadowed it at all, the year was fantastic in this part of the Santa Cruz Mountains one of the best in my memory, especially for the reds. The latest release from Alfaro starts with dark hues, ruby and garnet with a deep core and a heady perfume of rose petal and framboise that lead to a palate of ripe fruits, spice, mineral and hints of earth and sweet cedar and vanilla. The sexy mouth feel expands with plum, cherry and black currants as well as refined acidity and faint traces of savory, stony and saline laced elements that add interest to this forward and juicy Pinot. Lingering blackberry and Asian spices add to the joy of this well crafted wine, it has a balanced 13.6% alcohol, satiny layers and with only 175 cases made it is a steal at the price, drink over the next 5 to 7 years, best from 2016 to 2022, this is top notch stuff!
($40 Est.) 94 Points, grapelive
