2012 Pahlmeyer Wayfarer Vineyard Pinot Noir Golden Mean
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Tasting notes
The Golden Mean is made exclusively from Pommard and Swan clones. Medium ruby colored, the 2012 Pinot Noir Golden Mean has a savory nose of charcuterie and Marmite toast with a core of dried cranberries, potpourri, spice box and menthol. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has a beautiful earthy/savory character with lovely, fine-grained tannins and a good long finish.
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Average Score
Jeb Dunnuck
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
More reviews and scores
Brought up in barrels with slightly higher toast levels, the 250-case 2012 Pinot Noir Golden Mean offers a ripe, hedonistic style in its blackberry, melted licorice, roasted herb and forest floor bouquet. Ripe, opulent and layered on the palate, with tons of mid-palate depth and a broad, expansive texture, it’s not for those craving cooler-climate, green, tart aromas and flavors. This sexy beast has the concentration and balance to keep for another 10-15 years.
A more masculine, virile expression of Sonoma Coast Pinot emerges from the 2012 Pinot Noir Golden Mean. Dark cherries, new leather and savory herbs blossom in a big, broad-shouldered wine endowed with tremendous power. The 2012 was bottled just two weeks before this tasting, so it is still a bit shocked, but super-impressive just the same. There is plenty of upside here.