Wild Horse Pinot Noir Review
Wild Horse Pinot Noir comes from the Wild Horse Winery located in Templeton, California. The winery was named after the wild mustangs that roamed the hills to the east of their estate.
The winery’s founder is Ken Volk, who founded the Templeton location in 1981. The site was chosen because of its terroir and mid-point location within the Central Coast region.
Grapes for their Pinot Noir are sourced from multiple Central Coast vineyards. They say they do this to capture the expression that comes from grapes of multiple vineyards.
Wild Horse Pinot Noir Tasting
For this review, I tasted the 2012 vintage of this wine.
Appearance
In the glass, this wine is light to medium Burgundy in color. A good amount of light shines through, leaving soft red reflections on the table. Hardly any legs were noticed on the outset, however many developed as the wine had a chance to get some air.
Aroma
On the nose, Wild Horse Pinot Noir is lightly aromatic, though quite enjoyable. I noticed strawberry, some spice and a good amount of earth (the Wild Horse Winery calls this mushroom, I believe).
The earthiness was mostly noticeable when first poured.
I also noticed a pretty good whiff of alcohol in the aroma.
Wild Horse Pinot Noir alcohol content 13.5% by volume per the bottle.
Taste
I found this wine’s taste to be light and friendly.
I would describe it as mostly classic “Pure Pinot” flavor, with a little bit of juicy cherry in the mix. Definitely not black cherry, as the bottle suggested.
Congruent with the aroma, I noticed a bit of an alcohol burn in the mouth. Not enough to be distracting, but certainly noticeable.
The wine’s tannins were silky, evenly distributed over the palate and not overly grippy.
Finish
The finish was medium to long with the tannins carrying most of the weight. I did notice just a little bit of bitterness which is typical of a drier Pinot Noir like this one.
Overall Opinion
Overall, I found Wild Horse Pinot Noir to be a straightforward and well-crafted Pinot. I tend to enjoy the “Pure Pinot” flavor that this wine has.
I also found it to be especially smooth for a Pinot Noir. My favorite elements of the wine were the aroma and the silky tannins.
Wild Horse Pinot Noir price $15.99.
If you like the flavor of a classic Pinot Noir, this wine is definitely worth the price. Give it a try!
