As I mentioned Tuesday and Wednesday, earlier this week, I and a group of other Houston-based wine writers, tasted 40 American Pinot Noirs on a Thursday afternoon. The design was to taste through the wines blind, which means that I did not know which wine was ever in my glass (well, my four glasses, as I tasted that many at a time).

Tasting wines blind is always a good exercise as knowing what a wine is can always introduce bias when it comes to evaluation. Blind tasting also can produce a few surprises, as was certainly the case this time around.

When I tell people about these tastings I hold at my house, the response is nearly uniform: “Oh, sounds like really tough work.” Truth be told, while it might fall short of “tough work” it certainly is not “easy.” Tasting so many wines within a fairly narrow band of flavors and attributes (they all come from the same grape, after all), can be difficult to verbalize the subtle differences.

It is also tough on the teeth–by the end, we were all in need of a toothbrush. Badly in need.

Here are the next 8 wines, in the order we tasted them:

2023 Sangiacomo Family Wines Pinot Noir Block 11, Sonoma Coast, CA: Retail $75. A medium translucent ruby in the glass with a lovely nose of beautiful cherry pie and a touch of vanilla. The palate is big, rich, layered, and complex with plenty of juicy cherry and a lip-smacking tang. Oh, and it’s big, even really big. Another wine that pushes the concept of “Pinot Noir”. But I really like it. A lot. Outstanding. 94 Points.

2023 Stoller Pinot Noir, Dundee Hills, Willamette Valley, CA: Retail $40. Really dark color in the glass, barely translucent and a bit stemmy on the nose along with black cherry and a bit of heat. Really dark on the palate as well but this comes around and starts to work by the mid-palate, with dark cherry, a bit of black raspberry, and a hint of earth. There’s plenty of acidity, too, and some nice depth. Very nice. Excellent. 92 Points.

2023 Sangiacomo Family Wines Pinot Noir, Sangiacomo Roberts Road Vineyard, Petaluma Gap, CA: Retail $75. Medium ruby color in the glass with another lovely, classic nose of wild cherry, a touch of vanilla, and just fantastic. The palate is simply perhaps even better, it’s juicy and robust but also demure and sophisticated. The fruit is the story of course, but the way the acidity weaves in and out of the wine is remarkable. Outstanding. 96 Points.

2023 The Four Graces Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, OR: Retail $35. Fairly dark in the glass, with predominantly darker red berry fruit (black cherry, black raspberry) on the nose. I am also getting a splash of earth and a stemmy note. Really dark on the palate with those dark berries showing their might. More than ample acidity and a hint of tannins on the more than ample finish. Excellent. 90 Points.

2021 Illahe Pinot Noir Percheron Block Estate, Willamette Valley, OR: Retail $50. Medium ruby color in the glass with a muted nose initially–not getting much of anything. After a few swirls, it began to open up to some lovely red berry fruit: Bing cherry, red raspberry, and even some red currant. A wonderfully expressive palate of rich cherry fruit and a tangy, balancing acidity. This is another classic Pinot and just fantastic. Outstanding. 95 Points.

2023 Meiomi Pinot Noir, California: Retail $22. Super dark and concentrated nose, extracted. The palate is overly ripe, overly extracted, and really sweet. This is really not good. 68 Points. I knew almost instantly that this was the Meiomi and I really have no idea why this is the top selling Pinot Noir in the world. Someone told me that it has 20 grams of sugar per liter. After tasting it? I believe it. Listen, if you like it? Go for it, but it is a hard pass for me. Avoid. 68 Points.

2023 Sangiacomo Wines Pinot Noir, Petaluma Gap, CA: Retail $65. I tasted this blind right after a Meiomi and wow, what a delightful difference. A deep, dark, intense nose, with nice fruit of black cherry and maybe even some red plum. The palate is rich and loaded with fruit, paired with a tangy, zesty acidity that holds all that fruit in check. This is a fairly complex wine with great balance and a lengthy finish. Outstanding. 94 Points.

2023 Davis Bynum Pinot Noir, River West Vineyard, Russian River Valley, CA: Retail $65. There is some nice black cherry and some medium to dark earth notes on the nose with a floral note (more of a red rose, I think), and a hint of spice at the very end. The palate is nicely balanced between the fruit and the acidity with an above-average finish. Excellent. 92 Points.