Immediately after being served, the 2003 Pinot Noir Beacon Hill revealed black chocolate and dark fruit aromas that slowly morphed into sweet waxy red cherries with aeration. This gorgeously ripe, lush, medium to full-bodied wine is pure, broad, and suave. Immensely sweet (from fruit, not sugar), it offers lush layers of red cherry syrup, jammy raspberries, and spicy black cherries. The finest in a string of successes for Tony Soter’s Oregon winery, the 2003 is a candidate for drinking over the next 8-9 years. Soter served me a vertical of his Beacon Hill Pinots during my visit to his estate. The first bottle of the 1998 was aging prematurely, but the second, while revealing notes of cedar still appeared youthful (91); the 1999, like many Oregon Pinots from this vintage, requires patience but is outstanding (91); the 2000 surprised me the most due to its expansive, seductive fruit (92); the 2002's ever so slightly bitter tannin has melted away, making it even better than I’d originally predicted (92). www.sotervineyards.com; tel. (503) 662-5600