Johan Vineyards Nils Pinot Noir 2011
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The Vikings sailed most of the North Atlantic, reaching west to Iceland, Greenland and Newfoundland, south to North Africa and east to the Middle East, as looters, traders, colonists, and mercenaries. Like his forefathers some 1,000 years earlier, Dag Johan Sundby, a native Norwegian, came to North America in 2004 seeking a new life. The descendant of a long line of tillers of the soil, young Johan sought to sink his roots deep into the Willamette Valley, to make his mark on the ancient Pinot Noir grape. Inspired by the legendary vineyards of Burgundy, he sought the ideal terroir, finding it in the similar latitude and climate of Oregon. Driven by New World optimism and youth, he is anchored by Old World values and a fierce determination to make premium wines that will stand the test of time.
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.