2009 Tyee Estate Pinot Noir

I’m a big fan of Oregon pinot noir and I enjoy the wines from a lot of different OR wineries.  There are many, many excellent pinots from OR, at a range of price points and styles.  However, I recently tried a new OR pinot for the first time and, I must say, came away unimpressed.  The 2009 Tyee Estate Pinot Noir ($25/btl) was a disappointment.  This wine is very light-bodied with a thin, almost transparent color.  It had pleasant aromas of dusty earth and cherries, which showed promise while in the glass.  But the wine had a tart, too-acidic quality that failed to match the inviting aromas, plus there’s a bit of an herbal/vegetable quality that I found a bit off.  Tried it again the next day with similar impressions.  To me, this wine also doesn’t show the depth or complexity that would indicate it’s going to improve over time.  While this is not a bad wine, per se, and some may find this ultra-light texture and herbal quality appealing, for me there are just too many other brilliant Oregon pinots – even at this relatively modest price point – to waste time and money on this particular one.