Winemaker Notes
Blend: 40% Chardonnay, 60% Pinot Noir
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
From the ever-reliable Argyle comes this blend of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay that aged ten years on the lees to yield a complexity commensurate with its verve. The notes of fig and apricot that enhance the warmth of bread dough, caramel apple, and Brazil nut on the nose also highlight the coolness of preserved lemon and green plum on the delicately creamy palate, where nimble acidity accords with a finish lightly dusted with white pepper.
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Wine Spectator
This handsome sparkler reveals maturity but remains vibrant, offering baked pear and Meyer lemon flavors laced with roasted hazelnut and spice accents that linger on the rich finish. Drink now. 1,800 cases made.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2013 Extended Tirage Brut is composed of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay. Base wines were fermented and aged in stainless steel (75%) and used barrels. It spent 10 years en tirage before disgorgement in July of 2023 and received three grams per liter dosage. It has alluring, layered aromas of mushroom tart, dried apples, autumn leaves, chamomile and chalk. The palate is wonderfully concentrated and savory. Its rich flavors and soft, creamy mousse are foiled by vibrant acidity.
Representing the topmost expression of a Champagne house, a vintage Champagne is one made from the produce of a single, superior harvest year. Vintage Champagnes account for a mere 5% of total Champagne production and are produced about three times in a decade. Champagne is typically made as a blend of multiple years in order to preserve the house style; these will have non-vintage, or simply, NV on the label. The term, "vintage," as it applies to all wine, simply means a single harvest year.
One of Pinot Noir's most successful New World outposts, the Willamette Valley is the largest and most important AVA in Oregon. With a continental climate moderated by the influence of the Pacific Ocean, it is perfect for cool-climate viticulture and the production of elegant wines.
Mountain ranges bordering three sides of the valley, particularly the Chehalem Mountains, provide the option for higher-elevation vineyard sites.
The valley's three prominent soil types (volcanic, sedimentary and silty, loess) make it unique and create significant differences in wine styles among its vineyards and sub-AVAs. The iron-rich, basalt-based, Jory volcanic soils found commonly in the Dundee Hills are rich in clay and hold water well; the chalky, sedimentary soils of Ribbon Ridge, Yamhill-Carlton and McMinnville encourage complex root systems as vines struggle to search for water and minerals. In the most southern stretch of the Willamette, the Eola-Amity Hills sub-AVA soils are mixed, shallow and well-drained. The Hills' close proximity to the Van Duzer Corridor (which became its own appellation as of 2019) also creates grapes with great concentration and firm acidity, leading to wines that perfectly express both power and grace.
Though Pinot noir enjoys the limelight here, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc and Chardonnay also thrive in the Willamette. Increasing curiosity has risen recently in the potential of others like Grüner Veltliner, Chenin Blanc and Gamay.