La Belle is a perfect match for grilled salmon, plank-smoked salmon, and indeed for nearly all salmon dishes that are not in a citrusy sauce or ceviche. The wine will match seamlessly with most chicken dishes, Madras curry vegetable dishes, or other spicy meat dishes like Chili or BBQ. Hard cow’s milk cheeses, Parmigiano-Reggiano, Stilton or well-aged sheep chesses would be good matches.  Experimentation is welcome!

La Belle was hand-picked, sorted in the vineyard, and then sorted on the crush pad, and then destemmed by  special sorting machine that yields only intact whole berries. The grapes were fed bin by bin, not pumped, into a stainless-steel fermenting tank.  Fermentation began with gentle pump overs and included one or two punch downs towards the end of the cuvasion.  Pigeage is done traditionally by foot.  After fermentation, the wine aged in a combination of 10% new and 90% old French oak barriques for 12 months and four in tank, prior to bottling.

95pts. A wine that aligns with my palate, the vivid red 2023 Pinot Noir La Belle is bright with hibiscus, red berries, ripe cranberries, dusty earth, and dried roses. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins and a long, floating feel, it’s finessed and linear and should age gracefully over the coming 12-15 years. Audrey Frick, JebDunnuck.com