Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
The nose is fresh and shows great depth with raspberry crumble, dried wild strawberries, orange peel and milk chocolate shavings. Medium- to full-bodied with lots of spicy, crunchy red fruit, tangy acidity, firm tannins and a long finish. So good now but better in 2019.
-
Decanter
A blend of Cristom's four Pinot Noir single vineyards, with a mix of differing terroirs and soil types. Most of the vines are around 25 years old. 2015 was a warmer vintage but this retains good acidity and ripeness. It is pale, pure and limpid - a lovely Pinot Noir with a European aesthetic. The pretty cola and raspberry fruit is exquisitely tempered by the subtle oak, giving it an additional note of savoury complexity. The wine was put into a mix of new oak plus first, second and third fill barrels for 12 months.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Pale to medium ruby-purple in color, the 2015 Mt Jefferson Cuvee Pinot Noir has vibrant red cherry and black raspberry notes with suggestions of baking spices, fertile soil and violets. Medium-bodied with a good core of rich, ripe red berry flavors and a solid backbone of grainy tannins, it finishes with a refreshing lift.
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.