Roblar’s Gold Pinot

Roblar Winery “Gold Selection” Sta. Rita Hills Pinot Noir 2012: As American wine drinkers have increasingly honed their focus on pinot noir since the film Sideways premiered one decade ago, vintners have responded by producing the mysterious wine in myriad styles: deep and rich, bright and fruity, dark and musty, so on and so on.

This wine from the Santa Ynez Valley’s Roblar Winery — which employs the Sonoma County-based consultants Kerry Damskey and Bryan Davison to oversee its production — offers a fairly straightforward interpretation, varietally correct with familiar fruits and subtle spices. With a blend of grapes from the Sebastiano and Zotovich vineyards, it’s a great introduction for pinot newbies, perfect for setting your bearings before diving into more adventurous styles of the grape. It’s also a pleasant reminder, for those who do explore the fringes of pinot, that the grape can be simply smooth and fun to drink as well.

See roblarwinery.com.