🍇 Varietal Introduction: Pinot Noir

Pinot Noir is often called the “heartbreak grape” because it’s delicate to grow yet capable of producing some of the most elegant wines in the world. Known for its light to medium body, soft tannins, and translucent ruby color, Pinot Noir typically expresses red fruit aromas like 🍒 cherry, 🍓 strawberry, and 🍇 raspberry, along with earthy notes of 🍂 forest floor, 🍄 mushroom, and hints of spice or vanilla from oak aging.

California Pinot Noirs (Sonoma, Santa Barbara) often lean toward fruit-forward, ripe, and smooth textures, showcasing red berries and subtle oak.
Oregon Pinot Noirs, particularly from the Willamette Valley, are admired for their elegance, balance, and structure, combining bright cherry fruit with earthy minerality and soft acidity — reminiscent of Burgundy but with a New World flair.

In this tasting, four Trader Joe’s Pinot Noirs from California and Oregon were sampled blind — all priced around $10–$20 — to determine which bottle best represented the varietal’s hallmark grace and flavor balance.

🍷 The Wines (Tasted A–D / 1–4)

🅰️ Wine 1 – Compass Bridge Pinot Noir

Region: Sonoma County, California
Vinted & Bottled by: Compass Bridge, Manteca & Geyserville, CA 🇺🇸
Year: 2023
Price: 💵 $9.99
Purchased at: Trader Joe’s 🛒
Scores: Lynn – 16 | Scott – 12 | Total – 28
Buy Again:

Lynn: ✅ Yes – “Would bring to a party.”
Scott: ❌ No – “Nice flavor but metallic finish.”
Tasting Notes:
Light ruby-garnet in color with subtle legs. Aromas of cherry, licorice, and cotton candy, with an earthy undertone. The palate showed maraschino cherry, blackberry, and mild acidity. Lynn appreciated its fullness and balance, while Scott noted a metallic aftertaste that lessened his enjoyment.

🅱️ Wine 2 – Petiole Pinot Noir (Winner 🏆)

Region: Willamette Valley, Oregon
Produced & Bottled by: Petiole, Dundee, OR 🇺🇸
Year: 2023
Price: 💵 $9.99
Purchased at: Trader Joe’s 🛒
Scores: Lynn – 17 | Scott – 16 | Total – 33
Buy Again:

Lynn: ✅ Yes – “Would buy again and bring to a party.”
Scott: ✅ Yes – “Would buy again and share at gatherings.”
Tasting Notes:
Beautifully light color — elegant and translucent. Aromas of blackberry, plum, and strawberry, with a soft, balanced mouthfeel and gentle finish. Both tasters noted this wine captured the true essence of Pinot Noir: smooth, refined, and easy to enjoy. The subtle pepper hint added complexity, and Lynn described it as a perfect “deck wine” to sip while relaxing.

🅲 Wine 3 – Meiomi Pinot Noir

Region: California (Produced by Miami Wines, Acampo, CA 🇺🇸)
Year: 2022
Price: 💵 $19.99
Purchased at: Trader Joe’s 🛒
Scores: Lynn – 19 | Scott – 10 | Total – 29
Buy Again:

Lynn: ✅ Yes – “Would take to a party; favorite of the night.”
Scott: ❌ No – “Too heavy, almost Cabernet-like.”
Tasting Notes:
Dark purple, almost Merlot-like in color, with aromas of mixed berries, forest floor, and pepper. On the palate: rich, jammy, and fruit-forward, with notes of cherry, raspberry, and blackberry. Scott found it too bold for the varietal, while Lynn enjoyed its depth and flavor intensity.

🅳 Wine 4 – Trader Joe’s Private Label (Lot 241)

Region: Santa Barbara County, California
Produced & Bottled by: Bosano & Co., Morgan Hill, CA 🇺🇸
Year: 2023
Price: 💵 $4.99
Purchased at: Trader Joe’s 🛒
Scores: Lynn – 10 | Scott – 6 | Total – 16
Buy Again:

Lynn: ✅ Yes (conditionally) – “Would buy again for casual sharing.”
Scott: ❌ No – “Metallic, acetone-like aroma; not enjoyable.”
Tasting Notes:
Light burnt-red hue with strong alcohol legs. Aromas carried licorice and faint acetone, with a metallic tang on the palate. Scott found it undrinkable, calling it “paint-like,” while Lynn remained open-minded, noting it “wasn’t bad but didn’t taste like a Pinot Noir.”

🏆 Winning Wine: Petiole Pinot Noir (Willamette Valley, Oregon)

The clear winner of the evening — Petiole 2023 Pinot Noir — captured the best balance of flavor, aroma, and texture with a total of 33 points. Both Lynn and Scott loved its silky smoothness, balanced acidity, and true-to-varietal light body. 🍒🍓 The subtle earth and pepper notes gave it refinement without heaviness, earning it the top spot.

✨ Elegant, affordable, and perfectly representative of Oregon’s signature Pinot Noir style — Petiole proved that finesse and flavor can shine even under $10.

Our son and his wife tasted the same wines about 2 hours after we completed our tasting and ranked the Trader Joe’s Private Label at the top of their tasting list and considered it a favorite!! This was a very interesting result for our blind tastings as we generally thought the same wines rise to the top.

Pinot Noir’s are an exception to the normal tastings and there are wide varieties of favorites Pinot Noirs.

A case in point was this tasting with 5 tasters: https://www.winesaroundtheglobe.com/1020-tastings/zh84d348z6vfphqz7r60hq3txgke2c-zdeae-c6c84-gkka2-8k8tw with the Rascal Pinot Noir being at the top of some folks tasing list an