Cep Vineyards 2007 Sonoma Coast pinot noir

‘Cep’ is French for ‘grapevine,’ we’re told. The label features a drawing of a vine getting ready for bud-break. I think Cep is a second label of a better-known producer, but I’m not sure who that is.

I do know what the wine is. This is part of my nephew Ron’s Christmas gift of a case of wine selected for quality and the possibility that the wines might be a surprise to me. (Many were.)

Sonoma Coast is a pretty large area but it’s prime Burgundy country. There’s a lot of fog which promotes hang time — grapes have time to linger on the vine long enough to develop a lot more character, and sugar, than vines in France. More sugar means more alcohol. This wine has 14.2 percent alcohol — but not a bit of the heat, in mouth and aftertaste, that one might expect. It’s full, fruity, smooth, rich and . . . yes . . . “gulpable.”

It’s also great with food. I’m having it with a rich, creamy risotto and a baby-spinach and grape-tomato salad, and it’s perfect. This is not a wine I’d describe primarily in terms of fruit flavors, simply that it’s richly fruity. It is also earthy, as French pinot noir (“Burgundy”) is. If you have it with crusty french or sourdough bread, you don’t even need butter (though that’s okay). Just tear off pieces and scoop up some risotto and gulp both the food and the wine.

The only cost estimate I saw online was $25 for the 2006. Give this review to some friends who are sometimes your dinner guests; maybe one of them will bring you a bottle. –Bob Cramer, The Fearless Taster.