Bargain-Priced Pinot Noirs from Italy and Chile

Finding value-priced pinot noirs is not an easy thing, as some of my early reviews and wrap-up articles have made clear. Today we assess two bargain-priced pinot noirs to see if either hits the standards of "great value": The Indomita Cantus Pinot Noir from Casablanca Valley, Chile, and the Meridian Pinot Noir from Provincia de Pavia, Italy.

Review: Indomita Cantus Pinot Noir

The Cantus Pinot Noir is part of a value-priced line of wine from Cantus, part of Vina Indomita in the midst of the well-known Casablanca Valley region of Chile. The pinot noir shares Casablanca Valley with the white wines, while the other Cantus reds hail from Maipo Valley.

As my earlier posts have made clear, good value-priced pinot noirs are rare indeed. The promise of other reds in the Cantus line give me a (hopefully correct) optimism about the pinot noir. But let's see...

In the glass, Cantus Pinot Noir is light-to-medium dusty red. Aromas are fruity and deep, showing a touch of black smoke.

Upon sipping, you note a full round, mid-mouth experience at first, bringing clean, slightly-sweet fully ripe berries to the edges of your palate. This is accompanied by a touch of cleansing acids and hint of tannin, hiding entirely the lofty 14.5 percent alcohol. Finish is just a tad hot, but lightly sweet, clean and pleasing. Three stars on the Spirit of Wine scale, as I would find my way back to it.

Since the quality rating is two notches higher than the cost level, this qualifies as a "best value". Quite unusual for a pinot noir, but not unexpected for the high-value Cantus line.

Find Cantus Pinot Noir at WineZap.

Review: Meridian Vineyards Pinot Noir

The Meridian Vineyards Pinot Noir is a bargain-priced pinot noir that pursues a bit of sleight-of-hand. It's label says, "At home on our coast vineyards..." and its seal says, "Award Winning Coastal Vineyards", and the back label references Meridian Vineyards as being in Napa, CA.

But wait! What's this "Provincia di Pavia" at the very bottom of the front label?! Or the "Product of Italy" at the very bottom of the back label?! Well, it seems all is not coastal California with this pinot noir, is it? No indeed... this is imported juice from Italy, bottled in California. Interesting, if not entirely transparent, trick. I note that a number of retailer sites still (incorrectly) refer to this as a "California pinot noir". Perhaps because Meridian's earlier pinot noir vintages did, indeed, hail from the Central Coast of California.

In the glass, Meridian Pinot Noir is light ruby red, veering towards pink. Aromas from this young vintage are fruity, grapey-sweet like a cru beaujolais - light cherry and raspberry.

On the sip, a more acidic, just slightly leafy-vegetabley note emerges first. That comes to the cheeks and the top of the mouth - just a hint of faint sweet fruit comes forward. A touch of salinity on the finish, which is clean but crisp of acid. Two stars out of five on the Spirit of Wine scale.

Might mellow with another year in bottle, but I'm not compelled to explore it again. A sleight of hand that lost its audience, perhaps.

Find Meridian Pinot Noir at WineZap.