James Forsyth

9.1

Waltham is a town in the suburbs of Boston, near where Cara's mother lives. Its high street has both Dollar Shops and little boutiques. Its eateries include both inexpensive Cuban diners and hip new restaurants. Red Bird is one such place with its chic decor and unfussy new American dishes. The menu could have been guessed at well ahead of time: beet salad, Brussels, hangar steak. The chicken entree included a spiced apple bread pudding. Tasty but would have been more so served later in the meal with some Creme Anglais. Quantities were enormous.

Decent Massachusetts restaurants often have a common shortcoming: their wine list. Made worse by the illegality of corkage. The options were limited to around ten reds. A Chianti I've never heard of. A Bulgheri wine I've never heard of. A couple of Californian wines I've never heard of. And then there was a Damilano Barolo for $150. No thank you.

With some under the table research on Delectable and Vinous I chose this Oregon Pinot Noir from Averaen. Ripe red cherries but with nice freshness. Sustains well and gained complexity with air. (On an aside, I asked for the bottle to be cooled a little and it made the world of difference.) "Bottled by Banshee" on the label boded well as I'm a fan of what this Sonoma producer is doing, especially for the price. — 8 years ago

with Cara

Chris Blacklidge

9.5

Forgot about 2 days later...singing! — 12 years ago

Irene Ou

9.0

Meaty taste that go perfect with a medium rare steak — 8 years ago

scott watkins

9.2

2005 drinking beautiful great balance now — 9 years ago

Rick W

9.7

Amazing, amazing. Compared back to back with a 2010 Damilano and an 07 Beringer Private Cab, this one has fantastic bouquet, silky feel, blueberries and roses, long long finish, paired excellently with cheese and beef. Highly recommended and only paid $40 at BevMo. — 10 years ago

Esteban Leavell

9.0

Light grapefruit with slight mineral on the tail. Very nice — 9 years ago

JoEllyn Paolicchi

9.5

Wonderful, smooth red. Suggested by our waiter to pair with my summer truffle fettuccine. Soft, floral tones with a smooth finish. — 9 years ago

christopher stiglitz

10

Love it. Wish I could find where to buy more. — 10 years ago