The 2009 Pinot Noir Bien Nacido Old Vine is a pretty, supple wine laced with crushed flowers, spices, dried cherries and tobacco. This comes across as a touch forward and is probably best enjoyed over the near-term but it is nevertheless quite pretty. Ideally the wine is best enjoyed while the fruit retains its depth. Sweet floral and spice notes wrap around the delicate finish. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2017. I tasted a wide range of wines from Tantara, including a whopping 12 different Pinots. I can certainly understand the appeal of vinifying small lots of fruit from a large number of top sites in the Central Coast, but it must be a huge challenge to properly supervise the growing of fruit in sites that run from Arroyo Grande to the Santa Lucia Highlands. These 2009 Pinots suggest a little more focus on fewer appellations might not be a bad thing.Tel. (805) 938-5051; Fax (805) 938-0036; tantarawinery.com

Also exhibiting a certain mineral intensity as well as plenty of earthiness and spice box, the 2008 Pinot Noir Bien Nacido (about 30% new French oak) comes from the sandy, loamy soils over shale in this vineyard. The wine has excellent ripeness (about 20% stems are included in the fermentation process) and is an attractive, open-knit, spicy wine with oodles of red fruits and earth. Drink it over the next 5-7 years. This is a dizzying array of wines, including four Chardonnays and eleven Pinot Noirs. Perhaps it is overkill, but the quality of the wines is very high, and Tantara remains one of the bright, shining spots for these varietals on the Central Coast. Among the four Chardonnays, two are from the Santa Maria Valley, the Dierberg and the Bien Nacido, the Talley-Rincon is from Edna Valley’s Arroyo Grande appellation, and the Brosseau from the limestone soils of Chalone. The Pinot Noirs essentially cover virtually every Central Coast appellation, from the Santa Lucia Highlands in the north to the Santa Maria Valley in the south.Tel. (805) 938-5051; Fax (805) 938-0036

Another limited cuvee is the 2007 Pinot Noir Bien Nacido Vineyard Old Vine (from 24-year old vines), a dense purple-hued Pinot displaying sweet graphite, black currant, licorice, underbrush, smoke, and spice characteristics. A deep, full-bodied, powerful effort that will be even better with another two years of bottle age, it should keep and improve for 10-12+ years. This is a fascinating, exceptionally high quality group of Pinot Noirs. They tend to range in the mid-14% alcohol levels, with the oak regime generally around 30-60% new. Tantara’s policy with respect to fermenting with stems varies from zero to as much as 20% for the Dierberg, Evelyn, Bien Nacido Old Vine, and Solomon Hills. Production is relatively limited, from a low of under 90 cases for the Bien Nacido Old Vine and Brosseau, to just over 200 cases for some vineyards. The most limited cuvees are the two single vineyard lots of Burt and La Grande Colline, approximately 24 cases of each. Most of these wines, save for a handful of exceptions that are noted, are capable of lasting 8-10 years or more. Kudos to Tantara for a very impressive line-up of Pinots.Tel. (805) 938-5051; Fax (805) 938-0036

Very rich and complicated. Shows pie-filling flavors of cherries, raspberries and red currants, seasoned with anise, vanilla, cocoa, black pepper and cinnamon. Easy to enjoy this elegant, delicious wine. ——S.H.(10/1/2009)—— 92