Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
Lush nose of cherry and brown sugar; smooth, supple and juicy with long, elegant flavors and lovely structure; dense, complex and complete with excellent balance.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2008 Pinot Noir Laurene Estate spent 13-15 months in 25% new oak. It offers a splendid nose of smoke, spice box, floral notes, black cherry, and black raspberry. Medium-bodied on the palate, it has enough structure to evolve for 2-3 years, precise balance, a velvety texture, and an elegant personality. Drink this lengthy effort from 2013 to 2023.
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Wine Spectator
Floral, minty overtones add depth to the rich cherry and tobacco flavors in this medium-weight, focused and distinctive wine. The finish lingers appealingly. Drink now through 2018. 2,950 cases made.
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.