Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
-
The Somm Journal
Fruit sourced from several vineyards has produced a wine of great texture and focus. Crisp peach blossom is an endearing delight on the first sip, showing just a hint of the five months of aging that 50% of the wine undergoes in French oak. What does come across with clarity is the result of aging the other half in stainless steel; pineapple and honeyed white flowers are decisively vibrant. This is what Willamette Valley Chardonnay is all about: sunshine and purity, enhanced by an ethereal texture and fine minerality on the back end.
-
Jeb Dunnuck
A pale straw color, the 2021 Chardonnay Grand Assemblage is inviting with aromas of fresh pear, honeysuckle, and lemon curd. Medium-bodied, with great energy, ripe fruit carries through the mid-palate, and it has a refreshing snap of acidity on the finish.
-
Wine Enthusiast
With aromas of burnt sugar cake, pineapple and the white powder from a stick of Juicy Fruit gum, I didn't know whether to eat or drink this wine. The wine's rich mouthfeel and copious amounts of tropical and orchard fruits calls out for just a bit more acidity. The enjoyable icy note on the finish reminded me of a lemon granita with a swig of fresh mint.
In 2002, founder Joe Dobbes embarked on the journey to create Dobbes Family Estate & Wine By Joe, a testament to his passion for crafting exceptional wines. Today, Dobbes Family Winery lives out the family ethos embedded in the name, encompassing everyone into their circle – from their founder to their cherished guests, vineyard partners, and team, to those who savor their wines all over the world.
They continue to work with Joe's trusted vineyard partners of 30+ years and have brought on a few of their own to showcase the very best of Oregon—windswept ridges and fertile valley floors, the terroir of Oregon is as varied as it is breathtaking.
The Dobbes wine portfolio is an invitation to taste the limitless possibilities of Oregon wine.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
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.