Ermisch Erendria's Rise Pinot Noir 2011
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Robert Brittan makes the Ermisch wines, of which the 2011 Pinot Noir Erendira's Rise that I tasted with him represents the second release, source from diverse sites including a smidgeon from Brittan's own property. The Ermisches – who live locally – are owners of wineries in Argentina and Mexico as well as of an import company, Southern Wine Group, focused principally on Latin American wines but also commercializing this one; and they're searching for a Willamette property of their own. Tart-edged red currant and sour cherry make for a highly vintage-typical, bright and sappy palate performance, with hints of baking spices adding to the appeal of a long, vibrant finish. Whether or not this picks up some additional complexity with time in bottle, it will certainly remain a delicious ambassador for its region and vintage over at least the next several years.
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Kirk Ermisch has a wine production career dating back to 1995. He started the Seven Peaks winery with Ian Shepard, now Penfolds' Chief Winemaker. He was also the Project Manager of Kendall Jackson's Tapiz winery. In 2000, he restored the historic winery of Bodega Calle in Argentina, and later became its majority shareholder. Since 2010, Ermisch has been taking his love for cool climate Pinot Noir the logical next step, making small parcels of wine here in his home state of Oregon. Kirk has always preferred complexity and character over sheer power, and the Willamette Valley vineyards he works with, reflect that with each vintage. As with all the wines he makes, grapes are sustainably farmed, hand-picked, carefully fermented in separate lots in open top fermenters, and then aged in French oak barrels for a year prior to bottling.
Home of some of the planet’s most amazingly elegant and expressive Pinot noir, the Willamette Valley is a pastoral, mixed landscape of green, bucolic rolling hills, dramatic forestlands and small, independent, friendly wine growers. As a leader in environmental stewardship, the valley has some of the nation’s most protective land use policies, with two-thirds of its vineyards farmed sustainably and over half, organically. While the valley claims a cool, continental climate, and is heavily influenced by the cold, moist winds of the Pacific Ocean, its warm and dry summers allow for the steady, even ripening of Pinot noir.
The potential of Willamette Valley Pinot noir continues to attract the investment of serious growers and winemakers both locally and from abroad, as naturally the finished wines bring accolades from professionals and enthusiasts. With a range of styles from delicate dried cherry, raspberry and hibiscus to stronger notes of truffle, mocha, plum and spice, a fine Willamette Valley Pinot noir is a perfect expression of both character and grace.