Loring Wine Company

Brian Loring’s enthusiasm is contagious, and he directs much of that enthusiasm toward his admitted “obsession” with Pinot Noir. (“Is there really anything else worth drinking, besides Champagne?” his Web site asks.) Pinot Noir is all he makes, and he makes more than a dozen of them, nearly all of them single-vineyard bottlings from vineyards like Garys’ and Rosella’s in the Santa Lucia Highlands, Clos Pepe in the Sta. Rita Hills and Rancho Ontiveros in the Santa Maria Valley.

Loring’s style is big and bold, and the wines sometimes can be a little over the top, with lavish fruit and fairly high alcohol. This bottling from Brosseau Vineyard, which sells for $48, is certainly flavorful, but the alcohol checks in at a moderate 13.6 percent. The wine spent 10 months in French oak, half of it new, and 600 cases were made. This is a rich, concentrated Pinot that displays bright raspberry fruit, hints of rhubarb and mineral, firm but approachable tannins and a long finish. Loring’s wine can be a little hard to find – he sells much of it through a mailing list – but this one in particular is worth searching for.

Reviewed March 28, 2007 by Laurie Daniel.