Today’s incredible wine is not to be missed, dear Operative. It is one of the finest Pinots that we’ve show all year.

You should know that today’s Abiouness Wines 2014 Van Der Kamp Pinot Noir is a fantastic wine! Truly fantastic. The nose is abundant and lush. The palate fresh, balanced and so delectable. This wine was crafted by Nicole Abiouness, who’s had quite the career. If the Van Der Kamp name rings a bell, that’s because some of the top Pinot producer in California source their Pinot grape from this historic vineyard. These producers include Siduri, La Follette, Buena Vista, DeLoach, Lookout Ridge, 10 Acre, Spell Wines, August Briggs, HDV, Romililly, and Cerridwen.

Van Der Kamp Pinots fetch prices that reach over $100 a bottle, which make today’s wine even more of a steal.

What an incredible nose on this Pinot, with lush aromas of black cherry, dried wild mushroom, raspberry, pomegranate, soft spice, subtle gunpowder, clay and a hint of pencil shavings. Juicy and balanced on the palate, with equal measures of fresh red fruits and intriguing earthy spice. Flavors abound, with Bing cherry, raspberry, young strawberry, black cherry, dried cranberry, river rock, dried wild mushroom, subtle brown spice and a hint of cedar.

If we look to winemaker Nicole Abiouness’ career, we begin to understand just why her wines are soooooo good. Her career has taken her around the world, to work on some of the best ever winemaking teams, including Robert Mondavi, Swanson Vineyards, Chappellet Winery, Luna Vineyards. She’s also worked for Australian winery Yalumba, and French wineries, Château La Tour Blanche and Domaine Comte Armand. Her Abiouness label focuses on superior quality, small batch Sangiovese, and Pinot Noir production.

Oh, and the CIA connection? Sorry for the tease, but Nicole did attend the prestigious Culinary Institute of America, which is commonly referred to by its alumnus as “CIA”.

Today’s wine is Very highly recommended!