Pinot Noir Ma Danseuse, Peter Michael Winery 2012

The compelling 2012 Pinot Noir Ma Danseuse (1,480 cases) is even better than the 2013. Notes of lead pencil shavings, DRC-like forest floor, black raspberry, blackcurrant, Asian plum sauce, rose petal and sweet cherry characteristics are found in this spectacular, multidimensional, prodigious Pinot Noir that should drink well for 10-15+ years. The clonal material probably came from one of the DRC vineyards, so it is not surprising that. in this cool climate, with the great fruit purity California can achieve, there is a DRC-like resemblance.

If one considers the total production of all the Peter Michael cuvées (which must be approaching 30,000 cases) and the diversity of their wines, including six cuvées of Chardonnay, four of Pinot Noir, three Bordeaux blends, and lastly Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, Peter Michael Winery may be the best-run winery of its size for world-class quality. There has been a succession of brilliant minds and craftspeople who have gone through these doors, from the early days with Helen Turley and Mark Aubert, to Luc Morlet and now his brother, Nicolas Morlet. Having followed these wines for nearly two decades, they seem to go from strength to strength, and the 2012s and 2013s may be the finest group of wines Peter Michael has ever produced.