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The May 2022 Auction: Part 2
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1 / 2Lot 967
Estimate: $190
OC.
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Collection name
Reviews
92AG
"The 2011 Pinot Noir Treehouse is a firm, structured wine that needs quite a bit of air to start opening up. Dark red stone fruits, crushed rocks, mint, licorice and spices emerge, followed by more floral dried rose petal and violet notes as the wine begins to emerge. The savory notes of the year are evident but well balanced. This is a terrific first effort from Michael Browne and Cirq. If opened within the next year, the 2011 is going to need at least 2 hours of air for the tannins to soften. This is every bit as impressive as it was from barrel. Michael Browne remains deeply involved at Kosta-Browne, which he co-founded in 1997. Cirq is Browne's new Pinot project. The first Cirq Pinot emerges from Treehouse, a site on the Forestville/Sebastopol border, next to Silver Eagle, that informed the Kosta-Browne Russian River Pinot for a few years. A second site, Bootleg Hill, which sits at the top of Occidental Road, produced its first crop for Cirq in 2013. The first wines I have tasted from Cirq are very impressive. Production in the inaugural 2011 vintage was just 480 cases, mostly because of the challenges of the year, but production goes up to about 1500 cases in the more bountiful 2012. Incidentally, I am told the mailing list is still open for the 2012 vintage. Given that the waiting list for Kosta-Browne now streches into multiple years, readers who enjoy Michael Browne's Pinots should seriously consider joining the Cirq list. For those who are wondering, the name Cirq and the overall design of the packaging are inspired by Browne's years of performing in the local circus when he was a child."
Region
Red
Country
Score
"The 2011 Pinot Noir Treehouse is a firm, structured wine that needs quite a bit of air to start opening up. Dark red stone fruits, crushed rocks, mint, licorice and spices emerge, followed by more floral dried rose petal and violet notes as the wine begins to emerge. The savory notes of the year are evident but well balanced. This is a terrific first effort from Michael Browne and Cirq. If opened within the next year, the 2011 is going to need at least 2 hours of air for the tannins to soften. This is every bit as impressive as it was from barrel. Michael Browne remains deeply involved at Kosta-Browne, which he co-founded in 1997. Cirq is Browne's new Pinot project. The first Cirq Pinot emerges from Treehouse, a site on the Forestville/Sebastopol border, next to Silver Eagle, that informed the Kosta-Browne Russian River Pinot for a few years. A second site, Bootleg Hill, which sits at the top of Occidental Road, produced its first crop for Cirq in 2013. The first wines I have tasted from Cirq are very impressive. Production in the inaugural 2011 vintage was just 480 cases, mostly because of the challenges of the year, but production goes up to about 1500 cases in the more bountiful 2012. Incidentally, I am told the mailing list is still open for the 2012 vintage. Given that the waiting list for Kosta-Browne now streches into multiple years, readers who enjoy Michael Browne's Pinots should seriously consider joining the Cirq list. For those who are wondering, the name Cirq and the overall design of the packaging are inspired by Browne's years of performing in the local circus when he was a child."
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A large, geographically varied California region producing cool-climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay near the coast and richer Zinfandel and Cabernet inland. Its wines range from elegant to bold.
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A thin-skinned, terroir-sensitive red producing perfumed, silky and elegant wines of red-berry fruit and earthy complexity. It reaches its apogee in Burgundy.