Happening Now Tasting 33: La Crotta Di Vegneron Pinot Noir 2013, Vallée d'Aoste

For my thirty-third „Happening Now Tasting“ I have arbitrarily chosen another northern Italian Pinot Noir! Actually, for some inexplicable reasons I only taste Italian Pinots in my trusted Happening Now mode! Anyway, this time I am going for one with a considerable amount of presumed „Joie de vivre“. Hence, it has to come from Vallée d'Aoste. As you can imagine in such a mountainous Alpine terrain like in Aosta there isn't too much space for stuff like viticulture. On a mere (and wildly scattered) surface of approximately 250 hectares French(/Swiss) varieties like Pinot Noir, Gamay, Petite Arvine, Chardonnay and autochtonous Petite Rouge are calling the shots. Today's Pinot Noir 2013 was produced by the cooperative society La Crotta di Vegneron in Chambave. The grapes were cultivated on a wide range of vineyards situated between 450 and 650 meters above sea-level. The predominant type of soil are morainic and loosly sandy solis with medium speep slops. After harvest in the middle of September 2013 the grapes underwent a pre-fermentative cold maceration for 24 hours and were subsequently fermented for approximately 10 days in stainless steel. The aging time, as well in stainless steel, took another 8 months. So I am rather positive to assume: this one will be a crisp, fruitful and easy drinking Pinot!? Well, we'll see! Right now ...

  

7:06 pm (popped and poured)

Colour: super transparent, not really intensely coloured - but relatively dark, not very radiant either

Nose: gentle cool smoke, very clear and slightly lush appearing aromas of ripe strawberries (no really freezing cool ones); additional scents of pickled gherkin water, a very shy, mild touch of menthol and perhaps an underlying fragrance of rosé'ish roses; so far a very lean, mostly filigree and straightforward nose without discreptancies and challenges

Taste: very lively and suitably invigorating acid, plenty of lean and “crunchy” talkative strawberries, a slight infusion of crisp lime, nicely integrating cool smoke, already rather mellow and appreciable appearance, the gherkins seem much more reduced; so far surely not all too complex or long lasting however very convincingly tempered and promising for the hours ahead

9:30 pm (maybe a bit too warm, general recommendation: drink it a bit chilled)

Nose: fruit seems warmer and still rather lush, not as precise and clear as it was, in addition to this change I am sniffing scents which remind me of hay and slightly stinky reductive attributes (which I really didn't sniff two hours ago)

Taste: is mostly steady, there might be a subliminal teandancy towards berry'ish darker fruit flavours; overall it seems to be more simple minded an even slightly wishy-washy; I think it is the temperature (although it is not very warm at all, approx. 16° C) ... let's just wait

10:15 pm


Maybe it isn't a temperature "issue", especially the fruit seems more and more diffuse and as clear and precise as it was right after opening, let's wait until tomorrow ...

5:11 pm (sorry for the delay due to consumption of more interesting beverages)

Now, the aromas of the Pinot Noir 2013 from La Crotta di Vegneron are appearing rather marmelade'ish diffuse, de-refined and the structure-wise pretty simple. Still a so la-la *** Pinot. Unfortunately a rather dull one. If you got one I'd recommend: drink it quick and a bit chilled.