2003 Radio-Coteau Pinot Noir Savoy
Market price
Buying options
Tasting notes
Delicate, understated, and restrained, the 2003 Pinot Noir Savoy exhibits blue fruits intermixed with cherry notes, tart acidity, and a medium-bodied finish. It could easily be confused with a generic Cotes de Beaune. This was the first opportunity I have had to taste a comprehensive line-up from new kid on the block, Eric Sussman. Sussman appears to be on a fast track to success with his hand-crafted, vineyard-based Pinot Noirs, Syrahs, and Zinfandels. All of the following wines are fermented with native yeasts, aged on their lees in French oak with no racking, and are bottled without fining or filtration. The vineyard sources are all cool climate sites west of Highway 101 in western Sonoma County. I suspect most of Radio-Coteau’s wines are sold via a mailing list, so readers are urged to sign up. Tel. (707) 887-8335; Fax (801) 340-6041
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
(picked via four separate passes through the vines) Very good ruby-red. Pungent, primary aromas of black raspberry, blackberry, minerals and bitter chocolate; distinctly blacker in fruit character than the other 2003 pinots at this address. Dense and sappy, with an urgent crushed berry quality, an element of baking spices, and terrific mouth coverage. Shows firm, juicy acidity for the year. This very tight wine went into a shell in the glass. Most impressive today on the back half, where the flavors build slowly and finish strong and the tannins are quite fine. A broad, dry, strong pinot with the structure to improve in bottle-and a worthy successor to the superb 2002.