Gang of Pour - Daze of Wine and Road Trips

MoCool ’02 – Pinot Envy

Day-Twah (Detroit), Michigan
Old Hill Ranch Revisited

The theme for the 2002 version of MoCool was Pinot Envy, with the focus mainly on the Noir persuasion, but also including varietals such as Gris (also known as Grigio) and even a Blanc or 3. Once again, Gang stalwarts Alan Kerr, Allan Bree and Pascal Chambon (AKA Mr. Flippy, below right) were magnificent in the kitchen (with a more than able assist from Tyson Lambert), providing a wide variety of Pinot friendly taste treats for the Saturday Picnic at the home of Cindy and Clay Johnson. Kim and I were joined by "Cousin" Larry Meehan, and Scott "the Geek" Tobias, who was attending his very first MoCool.

As always, it was a pleasure to renew acquaintances with the many friends we’ve made at this great event, and to meet new friends as well. I was especially jazzed to finally chat in person with winemaker - in - residence Brian Loring (below right, on Larry Meehan's right), of the Loring Wine Co. Brian and I have exchanged good-natured barbs from time to time regarding our respective hockey teams, he being a big Los Angeles Kings fan. He also brought along samples of not only his own Pinot Noir, but also those of Clos Pepe Larry Meehan and Brian Loring Winery, Tandem Winery, Siduri and Testarossa Vineyards, all of which were most tasty to this unabashed fan of the New World versions of the varietal.

There was a ton of fine wines from around the world, and while I took no notes, one that stood out in my mind (if for no other reason than the fact that Kim and I brought it along!) was a 1998 Meerlust Stellenbosch Pinot Noir Reserve from South Africa. We’d very much enjoyed past tastings of this producer’s fine Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Rubicon (a meritage blend), but this was the first time we’d ever seen this. It showed deep dark color, with big dense fruit, more New World than Old in style, and it proved to be a big hit, disappearing quickly.

The Sunday Blind Pinot Noir Challenge was held at the Polo Fields Country Club, just west of Ann Arbor. 13 wines were poured blind, and all we were told was that there were four selections from Echézeaux in Burgundy’s Cote de Nuits, four from Oregon’s Willamette Valley and five from the Russian River Valley in California’s Sonoma County. All the wines were from the 1999 vintage, with the exception of two. We were asked to try to determine the respective regions of each, at very least, and indeed, that was all I even attempted, with some success. I only missed on three, but how I thought that the ’99 Rochioli West Block was an Oregon wine is beyond me. My impressions were rather sketchy, and for that reason, we’ve opted to feature Larry Meehan’s excellent notes from this event.

Kudos once again to the MoCool organizers, and you can bet that we’ll be back next year!

On to the Sunday Blind Pinot Noir Challenge

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