Benton Lane Pinot Noir (375ML half-bottle) 2014
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Wong
Wilfred
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Wilfred Wong of Wine.com
COMMENTARY: When I first saw the Benton Lane "postage stamp" label in the mid-1990s, I was already hoping that wine would taste good. As soon as I realized that Steve and Carol Girard, whom I had known from their fine work at the Girard Winery in the Napa Valley, were behind the wines, I got excited. This Oregon adventure has been on point and met all expectations. TASTING NOTES: The 2014 Benton Lane Pinot Noir simply speaks of the grape variety. This wine offers bright red fruits, some dried herbs, and a touch of the soil. Its characteristics meld well into one another. Pair its flavors with grilled lamb chops. (Tasted: March 1, 2018, San Francisco, CA)
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After countless months of looking at possible properties, Carol and Steve discovered an old sheep ranch called "Sunnymount" in the southern Willamette Valley. It was immediately apparent Sunnymount held great potential as a vineyard site. The property is in the foothills of the costal mountain range on the west side of the valley with hillsides sloping east by southeast, a perfect orientation for planting Pinot Noir.
Sunnymount straddled the border between Benton and Lane counties with some of the land being in each, and so the name Benton-Lane was born. Carol and Steve purchased the property in 1988 and planting of Pinot Noir commenced in 1989. Benton-Lane’s first vintage was 1992 which was custom produced at another local winery. This process continued until 1997 when the Benton-Lane winery was constructed.
Benton-Lane produced Pinot Noir exclusively until 2003. In 2004, the winery began full-scale commercial production of Pinot Gris from grapes purchased from carefully selected Willamette Valley growers.
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.