Had a long day of work today, so I stopped by the wine store and picked up a 375ml of this to have with take home lamb kebabs. My first TN in a long time, and it feels good to sit down enjoy a wine with dinner and contemplate it a bit.

Dom Serene 2002 Pinot Noir Evanstad Reserve ($21 for 375ml)

Dark ruby in color - the first thing that jumps out of this wine was the dark aromas of the Pinot fruit, coupled by an intriguing aroma of pancetta. With about 45 minute of air, the wine shows less of the fat, and presents a wonderfully integrated, graceful Pinot with palate presence. A bottle I had a few months ago showed more elegance, but this wine was still enjoyable.

I had this in the middle of november and would have to second Jamietowns comments. Especially the pancetta. I also thought that it showed very much like a Russian River Pinot. In fact, I think you could place it in a RRV lineup and you wouldn't pick it out.