Benton Lane First Class Pinot Noir 2006 Front Label
Benton Lane First Class Pinot Noir 2006 Front Label

Winemaker Notes

Our First Class is produced only when we have a particular lot of wine that is very, very special, and the 2006 First Class Pinot Noir is such a wine. To start, we look to our favorite vineyard sites for the most balanced, flavorful and concentrated Pinot Noir. We ferment these lots in small fermenters called "pots". We baby them every step of the way and move the best wine into new French oak barrels for sixteen months of ageing. As the wines develop, we select the best barrels to eventually become "FIRST CLASS" - the best of the best.

The 2006 First Class Pinot Noir is a dark ruby colored wine that exhibits cherry and blackberry aromas with underlying scents of anise, mocha and blueberry. Very ripe tannins and balanced acidity create a rich, velvety texture. The exquisite balance of this wine makes it a very versatile wine with food.

Professional Ratings

  • 92
    Supple and disarmingly enticing for its gorgeous raspberry, black cherry and Santa Rosa plum aromas and flavors, beautifully arrayed on a fine carpet of sweet tannins. Lingers expressively on the harmonious finish. Best now through 2016.
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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.

HNYBLWPNF06C_2006 Item# 97530