Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Barrel-fermented in stainless steel and neutral oak, this aromatic wine rolls into a gorgeous palate loaded with rich fruit flavors of pineapple, grapefruit and Meyer lemon. There's a suggestion of softness to the acids, and a lick of butterscotch runs through the finish. It's a totally engaging wine.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Viognier, whose oldest vines were planted back in 1993, has an attractive bouquet with scents of beeswax, peach, dried apricots and a touch of linseed. The palate has a spicy opening, a little resinous in quality with a light marine influence. This is quite a complex Viognier, a little reserved but you could see this blossoming on the dining table next to spicy cuisine. This is a well-crafted, cool-climate Viognier.
Full-figured and charmingly floral, Viognier is one of the most important white grapes of the northern Rhône where it is used both to produce single varietal wines and as an important blending grape. Look for great New World examples from California, Oregon, Washington and cooler parts of Australia. Somm Secret—Viognier plays a surprisingly important role in the red wines of Côte Rôtie in the northern Rhône. About 5% Viognier is typically co-fermented with the Syrah in order to stabilize the color, and as an added benefit, add a subtle perfume.
Running north to south, adjacent to the Willamette River, the Eola-Amity Hills AVA has shallow and well-drained soils created from ancient lava flows (called Jory), marine sediments, rocks and alluvial deposits. These soils force vine roots to dig deep, producing small grapes with great concentration.
Like in the McMinnville sub-AVA, cold Pacific air streams in via the Van Duzer Corridor and assists the maintenance of higher acidity in its grapes. This great concentration, combined with marked acidity, give the Eola-Amity Hills wines—namely Pinot noir—their distinct character. While the region covers 40,000 acres, no more than 1,400 acres are covered in vine.