Winemaker Notes
The 2017 vintage shows a delicacy and elegance we haven’t encountered in a few years, and our 2017 Estate Pinot Noir is no exception. Aromas of damp earth, warm spice, red cane berries and faint oak spice carry over to the palate, with balancing acidity and fine grain tannins showing potential for aging over the next 8-12 years.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A very foresty array of red berries, leaves and herbs with woody spices, all making for a complex proposition. The palate has a nicely contained feel with a fluid build of red to darker cherries, in a very approachable mode. Nicely cast tannin at the finish, which holds well. Drink or hold.
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Wine Enthusiast
This pitch-perfect expression of grape, vineyard and AVA opens with silky raspberry fruit. It's packed deep into a focused, evocative wine with excellent aging potential. Light highlights of cinnamon, chili powder and green tea with a whiff of earthy compost contribute depth, texture and complexity. Drink now through the mid-2020s.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Medium ruby-purple, the 2017 Pinot Noir Estate has an intense, inviting nose of blueberries, boysenberries, crushed black cherries, black licorice, dusty earth and forest floor with a soft frame of sweet spices. Medium-bodied, it has the stuffing and structure to age well, sturdy but fresh and with a long, flavorful finish.
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Wine Spectator
Poised and structured, with expressive black cherry, forest floor and stony mineral accents that build toward fine-grained tannins.
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.