Drinking good Pinot Noir remains one of my lifelong pursuits. Finding the most sensuous, enduring taste — at the right price — is a mission I have accepted.
The good thing about such adventures is that just when I think I have found my Pinot partner for all time, another falls bottleneck first into my arms.
Such was the case when the delivery from the Balletto Family Winery of Sonoma County, Calif., arrived in late December.
I looked longingly at the simple, white-label on the bottle for days, as it stood patiently in line for its turn to be uncorked and shared with the Wine Goddess. With so many events to attend, it was difficult to schedule an opening. Then it happened, on Tuesday, Dec. 29, when the stars aligned, the music was right and we did Balletto (the Italian translation is “ballet”).
The wine we tasted — Balletto 2013 Russian River Valley Pinot Noir — is the winery’s entry-level bottling but you’d swear it was just the opposite. The perfect balance of alcohol, acidity and ripe fruit is artistry of the highest quality and form. I learned later that the winery, headed by John Balletto, uses estate-grown grapes from seven vineyards located in three distinct areas — the Santa Rosa Plains, Sebastopol Hills and Petaluma Gap. The terroir is different at each site in this cooler, foggy end of the Russian River Valley, and it yields a unique Pinot Noir flavor profile of strawberry, raspberry and earthy notes.
It’s a beauty in the glass — ruby colored — pleasingly aromatic, and “traipses across the palate on its toes” initially and then “step(s) out with more brightness and flavors” on the finish, according to the Wine Goddess, who was only too happy to follow my lead for a dancing analogy to describe the wine.
Balletto’s retail price is $29 a bottle, but here’s the rub: there’s no Massachusetts distributor of record at this point. It can be purchased directly from the winery (www.ballettowinery.com) although some bottlings, like its equally fine Chardonnay and Pinot Gris, do occasionally find their way into the New Hampshire State wine outlets. When I wrote this article, however, there was no Balletto Pinot Noir listed in stock. A few Greater Boston restaurants carry Balletto, and you can locate these on the winery’s website map.
My suggestion is to join the wine club, which offers members a 20 percent discount on purchases.
Balletto makes it easy to win converts. It produces several highly rated Pinot Noirs, from $29 for the above version (rated 91 points in Wine Enthusiast’s December issue) to $42 for its single-vineyard bottlings — 2013 Winery Block (94 points, WE) and 2013 BCD Vineyard (91 points, WE).
All I can say is that Balletto wines merit further investigation and enjoyment!
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