Lingua Franca The Plow Pinot Noir 2022

Drink it now or cellar for up to 20 years. It is recommended to decant it for half an hour. Founded in 2012 by Larry Stone, Lingua Franca is an American winery that produces Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from the Eola-Amity Hills of Oregon. In 2022, the company was acquired by the Constellation group, which retained the same team of winemakers and the same philosophical approach to production. The Pinot Noir grapes are mainly selected from Block 1, located on Gelderman-Jory soils characterized by a layer of large gravel and planted with the PN777 clone. There are then small additions of clone PN115 from Block 3, Calera clone from Block 6 and finally clone PN943 from Block 4. The use of different clones ensures the production of a final cuvée that is balanced, complex, and with great aromatic character. After spontaneous fermentation in concrete and stainless steel tanks, the finished wines rest in a mix of new and neutral French oak barrels for 12 months. The wine is then assembled and left for a further 5 months in stainless steel tanks. The Plow Pinot Noir is an elegant and intensely aromatic wine that reveals notes of dark cherry, raspberry, and undergrowth, followed by hints of herbs. On the palate, it is soft and voluminous, concentrated and harmonious. It has velvety tannins and a sharp acidity. The finish is long and complex. Try it with duck breast, sirloin, or Vietnamese pork belly with mushrooms.

Price: £66.24 from 8wines UK